


We’ve Come Too Far, To Give Up Who We Are

by Aer



Series: The Tower and the Ice [2]
Category: Men's Hockey RPF
Genre: 2018-2019 NHL Season, Alternate Universe - Fusion, Alternate Universe - Psychics/Psionics, Alternate Universe - The Tower and the Hive, Angst, Calgary Flames, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-06
Updated: 2019-07-06
Packaged: 2020-05-30 17:08:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 29,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19407664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aer/pseuds/Aer
Summary: David’s life has taken more than a few twists and turns over the years, but he’s always been able to see them coming, to some extent.He never would have seen Elias coming in a million years.





	We’ve Come Too Far, To Give Up Who We Are

**Author's Note:**

> At last, the long awaited companion Ritter POV to Tip of My Tongue! This one was something of a bearcat to wrangle, but overall I’m happy with it. Hope you enjoy! Title is from Get Lucky by Daft Punk, though I was listening to the Halestorm cover.
> 
> Obligatory: “if you found this by googling yourself or someone you know personally, please hit the back button and spare us both the embarrassment”

David had always defined his life as a series of watersheds: flowing steadily along until he came to a break point and had to choose which way to go, and that choice then changing his entire route once made. 

Being tested at twelve for Talent was one. 

The day he officially hit T4 even more so. 

The day he realized he didn’t want to do anything but play hockey? Probably the biggest one yet. 

Signing with the Calgary Flames? _Definitely_ a watershed moment. (And ironic, too. Flames, water? Ha. Sometimes David really did amuse himself.)

But the thing about watersheds was he could see them coming, feel the mounting pressure of a million tons of water bearing down and waiting for him to make his choice. He could plan ahead, to some extent, because he knew there was a choice in his future. He could guess what to expect. 

He didn’t expect Elias. 

Then again, he was pretty sure _no one_ could have expected Elias. 

If the rest of his life had been spent flowing from one watershed to another, Elias... Well. Elias had been a goddamn waterfall out of nowhere. One minute, he’d been just flowing steadily along, and the next, he’d been falling, with no idea where the ground might be. 

But David was getting ahead of himself. He’d made a lot of choices to get where he was now- Elias was just the biggest, most recent change in the direction of David’s flow. Important, to be sure, but the cumulation of many, smaller choices. Trickles, that built into a river that turned into a flood.

* * *

David didn’t actually notice when Lindholm walked into the locker room. 

(He wouldn’t realize until later that that was... pretty weird, and the first sign that there was something different about their new forward. Later, he’d find it funny, that someone with the power to turn his entire world upside down entered his life without even a ripple to signify his presence.)

Smitty had been giving him shit over some perceived slip in his game, and David was too busy defending himself to pay much attention to the door. His passive awareness of every mind in the locker room, thanks to his Talent, was enough to let him know if there was something going on he needed to pay attention to anyway. He sometimes jokingly called it his radar, a mostly subconscious pinging of the minds around him, just enough to keep him updated and aware of everyone around him. He’d send out a ping, and their minds would reflect one back, just by their nature of being alive and _There_. Simple stuff. 

Lindholm didn’t ping back. At all. 

Actually, he seemed to _absorb_ David’s ping, so that there wasn’t even an indication that David had run into _anything_ , much less someone else’s mind. 

In fact, David didn’t realize that he was in the room until he overheard Gio mention his name- look, David was a T4, he sometimes couldn’t help overhearing things, especially when someone was thinking of him. When David looked up, trying to figure out why Gio was suddenly mentioning him, he was startled to realize that Gio was actually talking to someone else. 

He stared for a second. The other guy was definitely new, he didn’t recognize him. Furthermore, David was pretty sure he’d remember playing with someone who was practically the equivalent of empty air, for all the presence he had to David’s Talent. Narrowing his eyes, David flicked out another ping, focused this time. 

Nothing. It was like the guy was covered in Talent absorbing cloth or something. (No one had yet discovered a material that could blunt the effects of a person’s Talent other than simply being outside of their effective range, but that didn’t stop the companies from trying.) 

It took David a minute to figure out what that actually meant. 

Then David was staring for an entirely different reason. 

He nudged Smitty. “Hey, do you know what the new guys from the trade look like?” He muttered. Because if that was who he thought it was...

Well. That might change things. 

Smitty shoved back. “I have literally never met them off the ice, how the fuck would I know?” He returned, genial enough. He followed David’s gaze, and _grinned_. “Why, were you hoping for an introduction? I guess he’s cute, if you like them blond.” 

David instantly turned a dull red. “What the fuck, Smitty, no! I was wondering if that was the guy they say is a Talent.” 

Smitty’s grin softened, eyes going sympathetic. “You worried?” 

David shook his head. “No, just. Either that guy is a Talent with a shit ton of shields up, or there’s literally nothing between his ears. He’s not pinging.” That was a little mean to say, but David was almost one hundred percent sure it was the first one, not the second. Even coma patients had _something_ that pinged on his radar. Not much, but enough to tell him there was still life there. 

Smitty looked thoughtful for a second. “You could ask?” 

David eyed him. “Ask if he’s a Talent, or just stupid? No thank you, I like my nose in one piece.” Hockey players were physical animals, and expressed their displeasure as such. 

The new guy was heading for his stall. David flicked a glance at the name plate. Lindholm. Before he could pull out his phone and google the name to make sure, the guy had reached Johnny and Mony and- oh, he was pinging now. Still subdued, not even as strong as the T12 call up from last year, but at least he was _there_ now. David hadn’t even realized how unsettled he’d felt, seeing someone with his eyes but not his mind, until the mental aspect was back. 

“Never mind, he is the Talent.” David corrected himself. Smitty quirked an eyebrow. “He’s just really well shielded.”

Smitty frowned. “So well shielded that you didn’t register him? Is that normal?”

David shook his head again. “No.” Not at all. 

“Huh.” Smitty looked thoughtful for a second, before slapping him on the back. “He’s probably just nervous. Didn’t you say that your first day here was pretty scary?”

David had said no such thing. He might have implied some nerves, but definitely not _that_. He shot Smitty a glare. 

The ass just laughed. “Why don’t you go talk to him? I’m sure he’d love to have another Talent give him the lowdown on what we’re like.” 

David could _feel_ himself brighten at that, as the enormity of what Lindholm’s presence meant finally hit. 

There was another Talent here! A _permanent_ Talent, not a call up that might vanish without warning. He finally had someone who might _get_ it! Someone who might even consent to share with him at times- David didn’t miss much about FT&T, but the plethora of minds that would happily share space with him was one thing that he _definitely_ did. Humans were social animals, and Talents tended to be even more intensely communal- it was the nature of being Talented. One either had to be a hermit, or get used to having people around all the time, even if it was just a neighbor pinging on the radar. Most chose to be social. It was easier, and didn’t require a life of solitude. 

Smitty was laughing at him. David scowled. So what if he was excited? It was exciting! 

Smitty shook his head. “Just make sure he’s not gonna be like the other dude.” 

David made a face at that. A... lot of Talents had objected to his career choices- ironically, it was a lot of the lower level Talents, not the T4s or higher like David himself, that took the most offense to his actions. Wanting what they couldn’t have, he supposed. 

Though why they’d want to work for FT&T when they had the freedom to play hockey, David didn’t understand. 

“Gio talked to him and looked fine.” He pointed out. The captain was big on keeping the team together and happy. Locker room atmosphere, or similar such sentiments- and he knew how important that was for David, who could often feel literally _everything_ if he wasn’t careful. 

Gio’d made a point of vetting people, after the call up incident. 

Smitty made a thoughtful noise. “Still, be careful, yeah?” 

David darted him a smile. He had good friends. “I will.” He promised. He was about to go over to introduce himself, offer the Talent specific tour- there was a nook in one of the far hallways that no one else had found as far as he knew, and it was far enough from all the people heavy areas that it made for an excellent retreat for a Talent that was feeling overwhelmed. David would know; he’d found it on one of his first call ups, when the reality of playing in the NHL had gotten to be a little too much. Lindholm- no, he’d told Gio to call him Lindy, hadn’t he? Gio had been thinking about it. Preferred names were important- Lindy could probably use to know that there were places for a stressed out Talent to hide if needed. 

Then Coach walked in. And well- hockey was still the most important thing. Not even another Talent would ever make David forget what he was really here for. If Lindy was like him, he’d understand. (David really hoped Lindy was like him. He could use a Talented friend. Matty and Smitty were great, but there were some things they just didn’t get.)

Practice was, as always, brutal. Coach clearly wanted to make sure any dust from the summer was long shaken off. David was sweating like a pig by the end of practice, but he stayed out afterwards, trying to shake out a cramp that had developed somewhere between the twentieth and thirtieth save he’d made once Coach finally allowed the team to start taking shots instead of running them through the ice. 

Finally, the muscle let go, and David sighed, pushing himself to his skates. He needed a shower and all the food, and then to sleep until his muscles remembered that they _liked_ playing hockey. They definitely hated it, and him, right now. 

He was so focused on that, that he almost didn’t notice that he wasn’t the last one in the rink- and Lindy was doing that thing again, where instead of registering like normal, he just absorbed the ping, muting it better than any soundproofing David had ever encountered. 

He shook off the unease that that lack of feeling engendered, and sat down next to the new forward. The guy had his head down and chest heaving, clearly feeling the effects of practice as much as David was. 

“Hey. Lindy, right?” He couldn’t actually tell what his preferred nickname was- Lindy had armored his mind better than anyone David had ever met, which meant that even picking up surface level things like names or his fucking _existence_ was damn near impossible. 

Lindy nodded. Score one for David! 

Lindy still hadn’t looked at him, and he was a T12- he probably didn’t have great senses when he _wasn’t_ blanketing his mind in the most stifling shields basically ever, so David figured he should probably introduce himself, rather than rely on Lindy picking it up. Some Talents preferred that, thought it was rude to read people’s minds or to assume that people were reading theirs. David kind of got the feeling Lindy might be one of them. 

“It’s nice to meet you. I’m David Rittich, but everyone calls me Ritter.”

There were a few ways he expected the conversation to go, after that. For one, if Lindy was the kind of Talent that resented what David had done, he’d definitely hear about it now. If not, well. David had heard that Lindy’d been the only Talent on the ‘Canes, a situation very similar to David’s own. 

He’d thought maybe they might bond over it, or at least find some common ground to build from. 

At the very least, he’d expected Lindy to talk to him. 

Lindy did... None of those things. Instead, he just. Froze. David wasn’t actually sure if he was breathing any more. David blinked. 

Just when he was about to give Lindy a friendly nudge, to try and shake him out of whatever stupor he was in, Lindy turned his head. 

And. Oh. Wow. Objectively, Lindy was pretty gross right now. He was red faced and sweaty from practice, his hair nearly soaked through with it, mouth still open from panting. 

Somehow, that didn’t matter. Not when his eyes...

His eyes pierced right through David. They were a deep, clear gray, like a sky preparing to storm, and they sent shivers down David’s spine. 

They _looked_ like a Talent’s eyes- eyes that saw right through you, to everything you tried to hide. David couldn’t find anything else to say, not in the face of those eyes. 

For a long moment, they just stared at each other in silence. David felt breathless- he wasn’t sure why. Only that he couldn’t stop looking into Lindy’s eyes. It was like if he just looked deep enough, he could find the answers to any question he might have. It fascinated him. 

It was Lindy who finally broke the spell. He said something, tone light- David wasn’t sure what, English was not currently his strong suit and Lindy wasn’t playing nice and allowing David to pick up on his meanings- before vanishing down the tunnel in a matter of seconds. 

David stared after him. He might not know much about Lindy, but right now he knew, with bone deep certainty, one thing. 

He had to talk to Lindy again.

He had to see those eyes again.

* * *

Matty took one look at him and started laughing. 

David raised an eyebrow, and waited for Matty to calm down. It was, he reflected, somewhat revealing, exactly how much of their friendship revolved around Matty laughing at him. 

Matty did eventually stop laughing. He kept wheezing every time he looked at David, so it took a while. David just waited. Matty would get to the point eventually. 

“So, who is it this time?” Matty finally regained enough breath to ask. David tilted his head. Matty gestured at his face. “Who has you looking like you’ve gotten smacked in the face with a crush now?” 

David frowned. “I do not have a crush.” He grumbled. He didn’t! Lindy was just... Interesting? Yeah, interesting. 

Matty sighed. “Davey. Seriously? C’mon man, I still remember what you looked like when you were crushing on me, I know that face.”

David grimaced at the memory of his short lived, extremely ill advised crush on Matthew Tkachuk. He didn’t really like being reminded of how dumb he could be. 

Matty, of course, brought it up at every possible opportunity. Smitty wasn’t much better. 

David’s friends were assholes. 

“I don’t have a crush.” Was all he said though. Bitching about past dumb decisions did nothing to stop Matty from reminding him of them- if anything, the reactions just encouraged him. 

Then again, doing nothing encouraged him too. David just couldn’t win, could he? 

Matty just shook his head. “Oh, Davey.” He patted David on the head, because he liked being a patronizing jerk. “Don’t worry, I’ll still be here when you finally figure it out and want to moon over his eyes.”

Lindy’s eyes _were_ really nice... David shook his head. 

He did _not_ have a crush. He was just interested in getting to know the only friendly Talent he’d met in years! 

That was all. He’d talk to Lindy a couple times, be friendly, and that would be that. His subconscious would figure out that Lindy was just another hockey player, nothing special regardless of Talent, and that would be that. Exposure did wonders for stripping away any lingering fascination. 

(It was how he’d figured out that crushing on Matty was a dumb, dumb idea. _No one_ was cute after you saw them pick up their mouthguard from the floor and shove it back in like there was nothing wrong with any of that.) 

It wasn’t like Lindy was going to avoid him. They were on the same team! He’d be able to sort this out, and maybe even get a friend out of it, in no time.

* * *

...Lindy was avoiding him. 

It had taken David a while to figure out, because firstly, Lindy’s shields were still the strongest thing he’d ever encountered and absorbed any displays of Talent like nothing he’d ever seen. Which meant that David had to actually _look_ for Lindy, with his _eyes_ instead of being able to track him with his mental radar like everyone else.

As such, if he couldn’t see Lindy, he had no idea where he was or what he was doing. 

Secondly, Lindy was actually pretty subtle about avoiding him, at first. 

David hadn’t noticed anything at first. The beginning of the season was one hell of a distraction, and the back and forth between him and Smitty for the start- he liked Smitty a lot, admired him even, but David was here for one reason, and one reason only: to play hockey. To do that, he needed to prove himself, and to prove himself, he needed to play. Vicious cycle, really. 

All of this meant that while Smitty was his friend, his teammate, and even his mentor, he was also his competition. 

David didn’t have a lot of brainpower to spare for anything but that for quite a while. 

So the first time Lindy jumped and flinched back when David got too close, and then waved it off with a quick excuse, David bought it. Why wouldn’t he? Even Talents could get a little too into their own heads (as opposed to someone else’s) and miss what was happening around them. 

The second time was... a little weirder. 

Because, well. David did his best to observe Talented etiquette, even now, and a big piece of that was never touching someone without their permission. But he’d been falling, and Lindy had been the closest thing to grab. It was over clothing, anyway, so it wasn’t like David was totally in the wrong here. He’d been ready to apologize anyway, since some Talents were definitely touchier about personal space than others and Lindy seemed to fall on the larger end of the personal space bubble. (He ignored the fact that Lindy was fine with bumps and brushes and all sorts of contact with their null teammates, even if he didn’t seek any contact out. Other Talents could be a very different story.) 

But the way Lindy had frozen... It hadn’t looked like upset, or anger, or discomfort or any of the more common Talent reactions to unexpected, unwelcome touch. 

It had looked like fear. 

It had looked like he was cornered, and afraid, and hoping desperately for David to leave him alone. 

It had lasted barely a second, before Lindy was blinking it away, casually shrugging off David’s hand and teasing him with a smile. David laughed back, but filed away Lindy’s first reaction for further consideration. He’d figured he’d think about it more, later, when he had the time and brainpower to pick apart a million microexpressions to figure out why Lindy had reacted so strongly to David’s hand landing on his shoulder. 

It ended up being a moot point. Because the very next day, it wasn’t a millisecond of a reaction, brushed off after a moment. Lindy practically scrambling away from him- from the merest _brush_ of David’s hand to his bare skin- to the point of losing his balance and falling off the bench, said everything. 

Lindy was afraid of him.

David took a long time to calm down, after that. He’d laughed along with the rest of the team- Lindy had laughed too, because objectively, it _was_ pretty funny- but internally David’s stomach was churning. That wasn’t the action of someone who liked his personal space. 

That was the action of someone _terrified_ of David, specifically. And David had no idea why. Lindy had never seemed to have a problem with him, and David thought he’d been friendly. Certainly, no one had taken him aside and told him to stop scaring the shit out of the new forward. 

It was after that incident that Lindy really started putting effort into dodging David. David felt kind of like a stalker when he realized that even without being able to use his Talent to find him, he’d managed to keep track of Lindy, and exactly how much space Lindy was keeping between them at all times. It was... a fairly large amount. 

Oh, certainly Lindy still congratulated him after a win with a hug and helmet tap, but that was on the ice with so many pads between them that it would take actual, concentrated effort to make any kind of meaningful contact. Off the ice, David was actually somewhat awed at the way Lindy kept at least half the locker room between them at all times.

It would be impressive, if it weren’t for the fact that David was keenly aware that it was because Lindy was terrified to so much as bump into him.

Tracking Lindy’s carefully choreographed skirt around the locker room, so that he never came anywhere near David’s stall, David pondered if maybe he was just scary? He tilted his head. Maybe he was actually putting out some sort of aura that Lindy was picking up on- though how he felt _anything_ through those shields was a mystery. He poked Smitty. 

“Do you think I’m scary?”

(The ensuing laughter was maybe, slightly hurtful. David didn’t _want_ to be scary, but... Smitty hadn’t had to laugh _that_ hard.)

Why _was_ Lindy so scared, though? David was used to nulls being wary of him- T4s were rare enough that his decision to play hockey was an exceedingly controversial one, even though there had to be a hundredfold more T4s than the Primes- but Lindy was another Talent. Sure, he was a T12, but even that should be enough to disabuse him of the many misconceptions about Talents. David wasn’t going to hurt him... Oh. 

Oh. 

Lindy was afraid of David _because_ he was a T12. 

David... David was going to be sick. 

Now it was Smitty’s turn to poke him. “You just went white. You ok?” David could feel his concern, _’I hadn’t laughed that hard’_ underlying genuine worry that David might be about to puke in the locker room. _David_ was a little worried he was about to puke in the locker room, so he couldn’t blame Smitty for wondering. Also, fuck him very much for thinking his opinion had that kind of weight. 

David was pretty sure the smile he offered looked distinctly more like a grimace. “Yeah, I’m good.” He clamped his mouth shut after that. It seemed wiser. 

Smitty very obviously didn’t believe him, but thankfully he didn’t press. And then they were having to got out for warm ups before the game, and Smitty had other things to focus on. Thank god. 

Normally, David didn’t really like being the backup for a game- playing hockey was hard when you were on the bench- but tonight he could only thank any god that was listening. He wasn’t sure how he would have been supposed to just play a game of hockey while simultaneously processing that he’d been inadvertently terrifying the shit out of the only other Talent on the team just by existing too close to him. 

(He wasn’t sure how he was supposed to process that Lindy’s insane shields were probably a last ditch effort to preserve himself after some other Talent _hurt_ him. 

He wasn’t sure how to process that Lindy was afraid David might be the next.

It was for the best that David didn’t play that night. He might have ended up asking Lindy who had hurt him in the hug line, and broadcasting a teammate’s trauma all over the ice was not an acceptable thing to do.

Plus, David was still a little afraid he was going to throw up.)

* * *

David did his best to just let Lindy avoid him, after that. He wasn’t an expert on trauma, but he was pretty sure constantly confronting a flashing reminder of that trauma was not recommended. It didn’t always work- they were still on the same team and had to spend a lot of time in the same place, but David figured Lindy seemed to have things set up the way he wanted, and so he’d leave him to it. 

That worked for all of two weeks. 

David couldn’t really emphasize enough, to himself if no one else, how goddamn _weird_ Lindy’s shields were. They were so thick that there wasn’t even a hint of the mind behind them, not even in the “there is something here, you just can’t see it” way that most shields still betrayed. With Lindy, it was like he didn’t even exist to David’s mind. David honestly wasn’t sure if Lindy himself could feel anything, with the way his shields just absorbed any and all Talent that even came near him. 

This meant, that if David couldn’t see Lindy, he had absolutely no idea where he might be. 

Usually, this wasn’t a problem- ninety percent of their time around each other they were in the same room, so David just had to let Lindy do his thing, but. David had thought he was alone at the arena. He’d had a weird cramp in one of his legs that he’d stayed behind with one of the trainers to sort out, and he really had just meant to go take a shower and then leave. He was hungry and tired and didn’t really have any plans beyond getting clean and eating his body weight in something the trainers would probably yell at him for. 

Running into Lindy had not been part of that equation. 

Literally running into Lindy had definitely not been part of the plan. 

He heard the breath rush out of Lindy as they collided, both staggering back a step from the force of it. He was feeling a little short of breath himself- Lindy might be a bit shorter than David, but he was solid muscle, which felt sort of like a juggernaut when running right into David’s diaphragm. 

There was silence for a long moment. David made a joke to try and diffuse the tension. He didn’t even remember what he said, really, too busy trying to keep his eyes on Lindy’s face. 

(This was an extremely inconvenient time to realize that his teammate- who was _terrified_ of him, he couldn’t forget that- was also extremely attractive. Which he’d already known in an abstract way- Lindy was fit, hockey players were always fit, but that was one thing. Staring at Lindy, shirtless and muscled and flushed in a very appealing way was one hell of a way to figure out that not only was Lindy attractive, but that David was _very_ attracted. That was an entirely different issue.)

Lindy’s eyes were stormy when they met his, and David had to actively fight not to just fall into them. They were endless, and David was feeling breathless for an entirely different reason. 

“I- sorry.” Lindy choked out, face looking bright red, and David was forcibly brought back to earth. Mostly. Lindy was still sweaty and shirtless and very very fit and David’s brain definitely wasn’t firing on all cylinders. That’s was David’s only defense for why he didn’t just let Lindy go. 

That, and Lindy was looking kind of unsteady and David didn’t want to leave in case something was wrong and Lindy was about to collapse. 

“You ok?” Instinctively, David reached out to steady the guy that was looking like he couldn’t stay on his feet. 

Lindy took a step back. 

Right. Because David was a T4 and that was really fucking scary for Lindy. David shoved down the flash of hurt he felt at that. “Yeah- yeah I’m fine.” Lindy said, looking very obviously not fine as his back hit the wall and he froze there. 

Now David just felt like an asshole. Cornering the guy who’s afraid of him, Jesus. Not his finest move. He held up his hands, hoping that the universal gesture for being unarmed- and keeping his hands where Lindy could see them- might help Lindy feel a little less cornered. 

“I’m not going to hurt you.” Left his mouth without any conscious input from his brain, and David had to bite back a wince. He still wasn’t a trauma expert, but he could guess that this wasn’t the right way to go about things. 

Lindy looked confused. David felt his heart break, just a little. How many bad experiences with higher level Talents did Lindy _have_ , that the very idea that David might not want to hurt him was _confusing_? 

“You flinch away from me. You always have so many shields up, I can barely feel you. You avoid me. It’s... it’s like you’re afraid of me.” He explained.

Lindy was still staring. 

In for a penny, in for a pound. David had started this, he might as well finish it. 

“I don’t know what kind of experience you’ve had with high level Talents in the past that’s made you so jumpy, but I promise, I’m very careful. I’d never do anything to hurt you. I’d never use my Talent against you.” David gave a helpless shrug, and finished with a quiet plea. “And maybe that’s hard to believe, but... Give me a chance to prove I’m not like whoever hurt you?” 

(He hadn’t admitted it, even to himself, but it _hurt_ , having the only other Talent on the team avoid him. Being judged on the basis of his Talent, even by other Talents who had chosen to play hockey... Well. David was used to being alone, but he didn’t _like_ it.)

Lindy was dead white and staring blankly now. 

David was an _ass_. What the fuck had he been thinking? Sure, corner and confront the Talent with fucking trauma and then demand that he give him a chance anyway. That _totally_ made David look different than other asshole high level Talents. He needed to get out of here, he needed to _leave Lindy alone_. He also might need to cry, just a little. He’d really fucked this up, and now Lindy would probably never want to talk to him again. 

“I am sorry, I should not have cornered you.” David said, taking a step back as his shoulders slumped. He needed to go. 

“Wait!” 

David froze. He barely heard the word, too focused on the fingers, warm and sweaty, that had clamped around his wrist. 

Lindy was _touching_ him. 

David... David didn’t know what to do about that. Lindy’s hand was warm around his wrist, and for once David could actually feel Lindy’s mind. It was... a very nice mind, kind of soft and musical, even though it was currently just ringing with shock. 

Apparently, neither of them could believe this was happening. 

Then, Lindy let go. David had to bite his tongue to avoid begging him to come back. It had just been... So long since he had felt another Talent’s mind against his, and Lindy’s mind sounded lovely. 

“I. Sorry.” Lindy mumbled. He was very red. It was kind of a good look on him, David noticed, with the part of him that wasn’t focused on the way Lindy’s mind had practically sang, like church bells, through the point of contact. He missed it already. 

“I’m not afraid of you.” Lindy’s voice was surprisingly steady as he met David’s eyes. His eyes were still stormy, but- steadier. The eye of a hurricane, instead of the thick of it. “I don’t think you’re going to hurt me. I’ve never had a problem with other Talents.” His eyes still seemed clear, but his shields were still too thick for David to tell if he was lying without touching him. 

Which David was _not_ going to do without Lindy’s permission. Even if Lindy wasn’t afraid of David, he still very clearly had a lot of strong feelings about touching other Talents, and anyway, it was rude. He opened his mouth to say something- what, he wasn’t sure. Maybe an apology for cornering Lindy anyway? Even if the guy didn’t actually have deep seated trauma he still didn’t seem comfortable around David and cornering him to ask was still a dick move. Even if David hadn’t really planned on running into Lindy or asking him why he was flinching away from David’s every move. Before David could speak, though, Lindy had continued on, almost babbling with his face stained red as he tried to explain why he’d been avoiding David. It was... a lot. A lot to process, if David was honest. 

Lindy’s explanation was a bit... weird, but sound enough. T12s didn’t usually go very far in Talent training programs, so it was entirely feasible, especially once Lindy made the decision to focus on hockey that he hadn’t dealt with any other Talents, especially higher level ones, until he met David. 

It was actually kind of sweet? That he’d been concerned that he was going to overwhelm David on accident. Completely off base and probably not possible, but sweet. David’s shields weren’t exactly Lindy strength- and David _had_ noticed Lindy hadn’t explained why his shields were that good in the first place, but he suspected that might be digging a little too far- but they were certainly good enough to keep another Talent from just overrunning him. 

Lindy was shrugging up at him, sheepishly offering another “Sorry” David realized. 

David was smiling, he noticed at the same time. Smiling _hard_ , because of all the reasons to avoid someone, being worried about _them_ was probably the most ridiculous, sweet reason he’d ever heard. “You don’t have to worry about overwhelming me.” He said softly, still smiling. Lindy was blinking up at him with those stormy eyes, and David found himself continuing without conscious permission from his brain. 

“Actually, I was kind of... looking forward to having someone to share with?” 

...Damn it, David was going to scare Lindy off again at this rate. Way to come on _way_ too strong. Sure, most Talents were social animals, but Lindy was clearly not the usual. It didn’t matter if David missed having other Talents around, if Lindy was uncomfortable with it. But looking at Lindy’s eyes, he couldn’t bring himself to retract the request, or his hand. Hope nearly choking his lungs, David kept smiling and hoping that maybe, just maybe, Lindy would give him the benefit of the doubt. 

He damn near exploded with it when slowly, Lindy reached out and took his hand. Their fingers slotted together like two parts of a puzzle clicking into place, and David felt himself fall past Lindy’s shields and right into Lindy’s mind. 

It still sounded like church bells chiming where it brushed against his neurons. It was... beautiful. 

_:You have a really nice smile.:_ Lindy ‘pathed, sounding a little dazed. David could sympathize. Lindy had flushed, a deep red across his cheeks that made him look impossibly warm and soft. He was. Really, really cute, like this, a thought David instantly buried as deeply as it would go. He was having all sorts of revelations about Lindy, but they were the kind of revelations that were best dealt with alone, _not_ while the cause of them was sharing any of David’s thoughts, no matter how surface level. 

_:Thank you.:_ Was what David went with, instead of sharing any of that. He didn’t mean just for the compliment, and he knew Lindy knew that. How could he not, when the happiness David was feeling was practically bubbling out of him, like an endless stream. Lindy was happy too, he was pleased to note- quieter than David, but there nonetheless.

He was thinking about how lonely David must have been. Which. David had been. He didn’t like thinking about it or admitting it, but he’d spent almost ten years being groomed to work with Primes and other high levels Talents, before his “cute” extracurricular ended up being his life’s passion and he left FT&T for hockey for good. He didn’t regret that, but it had been one hell of a culture shock. Going from near constant community to being along in his own head... Yes, David wasn’t surprised that he’d ended up a bit lonely.

He was surprised Lindy had picked up on it, though. _:You noticed that?:_ He found himself asking. Which was, maybe rude, but Lindy’s shields were _ridiculous_ , there was almost no way he’d sensed anything from David before this impromptu link. 

Lindy’s flush darkened as he nodded. _:Not right away. I’m used to being the only Talent. I didn’t think you would be different until I started thinking about it.:_ He ‘pathed back, cheeks still a fetchingly dark shade of red. Then, Lindy apologized _again_ , which was really not necessary at this point. Though, David _did_ appreciate the thought and emotion bundle laying out exactly how much Lindy didn’t ever think David would hurt him. It hadn’t been a nice feeling, thinking that one of his teammates genuinely thought him capable of mentally scarring him forever. He had to laugh a little, actually, at how very much Lindy found the idea a ridiculous one. 

Giving Lindy’s hand one last squeeze, David regretfully withdrew. He’d intruded enough, no matter how nice it felt. He didn’t want to push Lindy too much, after all. “I really missed that. Thanks, Lindy.” He sighed. Lindy’s shields were far too good for David to get anything off the other Talent if they weren’t touching. “Too bad we can’t do that more often.” He couldn’t stop himself from adding. But it just wasn’t feasible, or polite, to ask Lindy to hold his hand all the time. 

Lindy was, for once, broadcasting his confusion- maybe he was having difficultly switching back to words after they had been linked? It cut off after a second, vanishing behind the absorbent shields, but David got the point. “Your shields are... very good.” He explained, though _very good_ was also very much an understatement. Lindy’s shields were- it bore repeating- utterly ridiculous. “I can’t read you at all without the contact.” David offered Lindy a small smile, because it wasn’t his fault David was longing for more after just a taste of being able to link with Lindy. 

Lindy looked at him intently. His eyes were dark, deeper than usual, and it was an effort to not get lost in them. Whatever Lindy saw, he must have liked, because the next thing David knew, he could _feel_ Lindy, for the first time ever, reflect one of David’s pings. 

David had to keep his jaw from dropping. Lindy’s mind, even behind the lighter shields was just. Wow. It had been ringing like bells when they’d linked through their hands, and now it was a distant ripple of chimes, harmonizing to David’s ping with the most gorgeous tones. 

_:How about now?:_ Lindy ‘pathed with a smile. 

David couldn’t have stopped himself from beaming back if he’d _tried_.

* * *

The second David got home, he texted Matt. 

_Think I’m about to do something stupid._

_lol lemme get the popcorn_

David rolled his eyes. This was why he didn’t have a crush on Matty anymore. One reason of many, sadly. 

_Asshole_ He sent. _I’m seriously concerned I’m about to fuck up and you want popcorn?_

_lmao duh_  
_anyway whats up decided u want this dick after all_

And there it was. David rolled his eyes again. Matty still found the idea that David had had a crush on him _two years ago_ hilarious. Though he was at least self aware enough to realize that David crushing on him _again_ would be very stupid. 

_Ew gross_ He shot back. _No actually I think I might have a crush on Lindy?_

It took several minutes for Matty to stop sending him crying laughing emojis. David waited patiently. 

_fucking told u so_

Yeah, he’d seen that one coming too. 

_Fuck off_ Was what he said, though. Matty did not need any encouragement.

_so u need advice huh_

David stared at his phone like it was about to start manifesting snakes. 

_No._ He could not imagine _any_ world in which he wanted Matthew Tkachuk’s advice on how to deal with a crush. 

_u should walk up to him naked uve got a nice dick id be into it if i was into dicks_

_What the fuck no._ Yeah, definitely snakes. Or dicks. Dick snakes? David shook his head. He was getting off track. 

_it would work i betchu 50 bucks_

_No absolutely not I am not sexually harassing Lindy_

_hed totally be into u tho_

_I texted you for advice on getting over crushes not suggestions for harassing him_

_this is more fun tho_

David was friends with terrible, terrible people. 

_besides u dont wanna get over him you just wanna get him_  
_n wat kinda friend would i be if i didnt help you with that_

Terrible, terribly perceptive people. 

_I don’t want your help._ He sent back. He really, really didn’t. Matty was still interested in sleeping around as much as possible and his skill set reflected that, which was great for him. It didn’t really help David at all though. Because yeah, he could admit, if only to himself, that Lindy was really cute, with amazing eyes and the most beautiful mind David had ever heard. How could he _not_ like that? How could he not _want_ that? 

He just had no clue what to _do_ about it.

* * *

David had promised himself that he would give Lindy some space to adjust. It would be better for both of them- David needed some space because this crush was still new and overwhelming, and he figured Lindy might be regretting letting him in so quickly. It would be best if David didn’t push. 

He... hadn’t done so well with that. In his defense, the next day when Lindy walked into practice, his mind chimed against David’s, this cheerful little note that definitely meant Lindy was still configuring his shields for David to reach out to him. To read him. Under those circumstances, it was near impossible for David _not_ to reach out. And Lindy let him in, just like that, his public shields sliding around David like water, letting him dive right in. 

It was intoxicating. 

Oh, he knew Lindy wasn’t letting him in everywhere, his private shields were as strong as ever. But David couldn’t hold that against him. Not when Lindy let him expand through every bit of his public mind with a smile and an quiet mental laugh like fucking wind chimes. 

David would do a lot to feel that laugh again. 

So he did. He poked and joked and laughed and every time he did Lindy got that secret smile that lit up his eyes more than anything, and sent that fucking wind chime laugh to rattle around David’s neurons. David was... more than a bit stupid for those eyes. 

Before David knew it, practice was over. He’d lost track of time, too busy joking with Lindy about Coach’s temper or Nealer’s hair, nudging him and glorying in the fact that he _could_ and Lindy would laugh, and lean into it, and grin at him. 

Matty was also laughing at him, much less good-naturedly, but David ignored that. He was having too much fun! 

So, the first day, giving Lindy space didn’t happen. 

He tried the second day, he swore. Lindy didn’t seem as social as most Talents and David really didn’t want to overwhelm him or annoy him. Most Talents that weren’t supposed to gestalt with Primes or other Talents didn’t spend all day with those other Talents in their heads. It was fine, David didn’t want to push. 

He got as far as dressing for practice before Lindy’s mind slotted right in next to his, ringing quietly in an unspoken question. Across the room Lindy was giving him a raised eyebrow. 

David grinned helplessly back, and poked Lindy’s shields. It barely took a breath before they were folding around him like he’d never even left. 

_:Miss me?:_ He teased, but Lindy just gave him a small, heartfelt smile, more mental than physical with how it hummed softly against David’s mind. 

It was the first indication that Lindy might actually want this as much as David did. Might like it as much as David did. 

David maybe let that go to his head a bit. 

In his defense, it was really, really hard to think straight when his newly discovered crush was smiling at him and inviting him to take up residence in his head and humming like the sweetest music where he brushed up against David’s shields. So he did. Lindy didn’t seem to notice or care as David curled up in the corner of Lindy’s mind that was already beginning to feel more like _him_.

David couldn’t have stopped himself from walking over to throw an arm around Lindy’s shoulders then if he’d tried. Lindy just leaned into it with a smile that David could feel fizzing under his skin, Lindy’s own skin warm against his fingers.

That day, they didn’t talk much. 

David didn’t feel like he needed to. They might only be linked on the surface of their minds, but that was more than enough for them to be in sync, comfortable with each other in a way people rarely experienced so quickly. He caught a couple guys giving them weird looks when they tilted their heads in unison to listen to Coach, leaning against the boards in the same pose (David thought Lindy might have even shifted like he was wearing goalie pads for a sec), but it was hard to care. Mirror neurons were a thing even when you weren’t literally linked into someone else’s brain. Smitty bumped him as they warmed up, cocking an eyebrow. 

“Talent thing.” David muttered, and that was enough for Smitty to leave it alone. 

Matty was still laughing at him, the dick. David was pretty sure at one point he’d actually looked up some of the mental exercises most Talents used, to get used to focusing and directing their thoughts, specifically so that he could to make sure David could always feel it when Matty had something to say. 

Lindy didn’t seem to notice- David did try to keep thoughts like Matty and why Matty might be laughing at him away from Lindy’s areas of his mind. However, his shields were definitely not as rock solid as Lindy’s, so things might slip. Thankfully, Lindy was definitely the private type, and he extended that courtesy to David. He never went prying, just settled into the areas David opened up to him with a quiet hum of contentment. 

It was nice. 

It was really nice. David could lose himself in how nice it felt, honestly. 

The next morning, the day of their next game, Lindy sat down next to him while David was strapping on his pads, startling David a little. He had his pads on too, but had left his jersey off for the time being for some reason. He nudged David with his shoulder, not hard, but it still left David feeling off balance. “Hey, just thought we should talk about this before the game.”

David quirked an eyebrow at him, trying to focus. Hockey pads were a good look on most anybody, but Lindy was really making them work, shoulders broad and strong and accentuated in all the best ways. Sometimes, David despaired of himself. “Yeah?” Was all he said. 

Lindy fidgeted with his elbow pad for a second. “I just... Look, hockey is still the most important thing, you know?” Which, of fucking course? David was a little offended, actually, that Lindy felt the need to clarify. “So I don’t think we should link on game days, I don’t want to mess up or get accused of cheating, so I’m gonna stay shielded.”

David blinked, finally figuring out why he felt so off balance. Lindy wasn’t pinging anymore. Jesus, David had forgotten how weird that felt. Lindy turning into a Talent void would never not feel bizarre (even more so now that he knew what it was like to have Lindy right there).

“Oh yeah, of course.” Was all he said, though. Lindy was right, of course. The NHL didn’t specifically hire refs or linesmen based on Talent, but everyone knew they tried to have at least one Talented official at every game, to make sure no one was fudging anything. Next best thing to being able to block Talent, which. Good fucking luck with that. Maybe if they got Lindy to explain his shields? But David was pretty sure that was just Lindy, not something a company could reproduce. 

David didn’t actually think he and Lindy being linked would do anything for their game, but he didn’t want to push. He’d promised himself he wouldn’t, actually, and Lindy did have a point. Lindy gave him a smile. 

“Thanks.” He patted David’s shoulder and pushed up, heading back to his stall. David watched him go, still feeling unsettled. Jesus, it had literally been two days, he could not be this reliant on having Lindy in his head already. 

(Reliant? No. Used to? Absolutely. Missing it when Lindy was gone? Oh, _definitely_.)

Matty took Lindy’s spot. David had to try very hard not to snap at him. 

“Jeez dude, what crawled up your ass?” David glowered at him.

“Nothing.” He really did need to get ready for the game, and Matty was kind of interrupting that. 

Matty rolled his eyes. 

“Chill, seriously. It’s just one day, I’m pretty sure you can go that long without making puppy dog eyes at your _crush_.” His voice lilted up mockingly on the last word, and David shoved his shoulder. 

“Ass.” He grumbled, but felt a smile tugging at his mouth anyway, settling into their banter with a steadiness that slowly became more real, Matty gleefully poking at him the whole way. 

Making friends with Matty was probably both the best and the worst thing he’d ever done. 

Matty paused, before they headed on to the ice. “But seriously, you ok? With all the weird brain shit and everything?” 

David nodded. “Yeah, I’m good.” And he even meant it. Matty really was a good friend.

Fortunately, once the game got going, David didn’t have time to worry about anything but stopping every puck that came his way. There was no time to feel off balance, even though Lindy remained a skating mental void of a person that definitely still felt very, very weird. At the first intermission, David had to acknowledge that Lindy had probably been right to avoid linking- he’d caught one of the refs shooting discomfited looks at Lindy when he wasn’t looking, so there was definitely at least one Talented official at the game tonight. (David was also mildly gratified to know it wasn’t just him that found Lindy’s shields a bit weird.) 

Linking the way he and Lindy did was... frowned upon, if not technically illegal. Though that was mostly only because the NHL a dinosaur of an institution that was still adapting to the new realities of the world- they’d already banned the obvious uses of Talent, teleporting pucks into nets or mentally tripping up a player was out, but more subtle things were harder for them to quantify and rule out. It wouldn’t stop the refs from calling them out for it, though. David did not want to field even more accusations that he was using his Talent to cheat. 

He’d been through that circus a few too many times to ever want those monkeys back. 

Still, it was a relief the next day when Lindy walked into the room and immediately pinged against David’s senses. Even more so when David barely had to brush his shields before he was in. _:Hey.:_ He kind of groaned at himself. He seriously couldn’t say anything better than that?

Lindy’s lips twitched. _:Hey.:_ No one’s mental tone had a right to be that sassy. Lindy snorted at him, and just like that, they were back to normal, Lindy humming softly in the corner of David’s mind that he was beginning to think of as Lindy’s. David couldn’t stop smiling. 

Yesterday had been... Fine, but he hadn’t really liked it. Hadn’t really wanted to go back to that being his new normal. That he didn’t have to was... good. Really good. 

Matty made sure to catch his eye so that David could see exactly how hard he rolled his. But he’d had a grin tugging the corner of his mouth, so David knew Matty was just being his usual little shit self. _’Puppy dog eyes.’_ He mouthed, smirking. 

Yeah. _Definitely_ being a little shit. 

David flipped him the middle finger when Lindy wasn’t looking, though that may have been a lost cause, as Lindy just snorted in his head. Lindy found David pretty funny, as it turned out. 

So, yeah. Giving Lindy space... Didn’t happen. Lindy didn’t seem to want it either, which David could admit he was grateful for. He’d have given Lindy the time and space, if Lindy had asked for it. 

It was just... Nice, that Lindy seemed perfectly happy to let David right into his mind as often as David could want. 

Well. At least, he did when they were range. David could probably reach Lindy at his home without too much effort, but Lindy’s range was pretty small, being a T12 and all. David was pretty sure it was only the physical contact they’d indulged in at first- and continued to do so now- that allowed them as much of a link as they did now. Lindy’s shorter range did make it harder for David. Both to link in with Lindy since he’d have to do all the work himself, and to know if he was really welcome to even reach out. 

(Lindy’s shields, David was pretty sure, could probably keep out a T2 if he wanted, maybe even a Prime. He’d keep David out if he wanted him out, but that didn’t mean David wanted to go knocking where he wasn’t sure of his welcome. Bothering Lindy was the last thing he wanted, even if his apartment was getting a lot lonelier feeling these days. David did have some sense of boundaries, thank you very much, _Matty_ , and he was pretty sure linking with Lindy when they weren’t actively spending time together was a few steps too far.

Maybe one day, if they got to know each other better.)

David shook his head, dislodging the thought. The likelihood of that ever happening, no matter how well they knew each other, was slim to none. Letting himself dream was just false hope. He was happy with the way things were now, he really was. He’d never imagined having another Talent accept him- accept all of him, Talent and hockey and everything- the way Lindy did, and that was enough. 

Even if he wanted more.

It had to be.

* * *

David fell into a rhythm with Lindy as easy as breathing. Meet up, link up, let the link fade as they departed. Hell, David didn’t even have to tap on his shields anymore- as soon as they were close enough he was folded right in like he’d never even left. Game days were the only times they didn’t anymore, Lindy’s shields snapping back to their original, forbidding state with ease. 

David sometimes thought the reminder that Lindy could keep him out any time he wanted made it all the more special every time Lindy let him in without batting an eyelash.

It really hit home, how close they had become, only a few weeks after starting the whole thing. A trainer had been looking for Lindy, and he hadn’t been in any of his usual places. 

“He’s in the store room.” The words fell from David’s mouth without thought. Lindy had run out of the tape he preferred and had gone to get a new roll rather than bother anyone about it. 

The entire room turned to look at him. The trainer just nodded in thanks and took off, leaving David to the nonexistent mercy of a room full of hockey players. 

“How did you know that?” Smitty, at least, looked genuinely curious. Matty’s gleeful anticipation prodding at David’s shields made it very clear why everyone else was waiting on baited breath for his answer. 

“I’m pretty sure no one knew where Lindy was going, given that I’m pretty sure most of us hadn’t noticed him leaving.” Gio agreed. Several other nods of agreement meant David really despair of his team’s situational awareness. It wasn’t like Lindy had been trying to sneak out, he’d walked right past most of them! 

David just shrugged and smiled, though. “Talent thing.” He offered, hoping they’d leave it at that. 

Some did. Johnny and Mony were good kids and accepted that at face value, leaving him be. Others... Yeah, not so much. 

Smitty’s look had gone from curious to curious and suspicious. “You’ve never known where anyone else is...”

David blinked at him. “And?” 

“So how do you know about Lindy?” Gio’s arms were crossed. His mind was very loud. _’Didn’t let Lindy bother Ritter, sure as hell not going to let Ritter bother Lindy... If this is some weird Talent hierarchy thing...’_ David frowned at him, ignoring what he’d just picked up. It was only polite, and he’d learned a long time ago that treating the unspoken as part of the conversation just made things worse. 

“I can sense him?” 

“But how?” David bit back a sigh of frustration. _Nulls_. Sometimes he missed FT&T- not the focus on Talent to the exclusion of every other possible interest or career, but the understanding. People knew what Talents were, what they could do, and more importantly, what they couldn’t and wouldn’t. Nulls were always so suspicious. Then again, and David included himself in this, Talents also weren’t always very good about explaining things. It was hard, to put some things into words. 

“I told you, it’s a Talent thing. He lets me sense him, so I do.” He was so not getting into the intricacies of linking in the middle of the locker room after practice. (And there it was again, that Talent lack of explanation. David almost laughed at himself- no matter how justified it was that he didn’t feel like getting into an hour long conversation about how he and Lindy’s Talents worked.)

“Lets you?” Gio’s arms relaxed, his mind quieting. David sighed again. 

“Yes, _lets_ me. Talents are easier to sense but only if they let you. Shields.” He explained haphazardly, tapping his head at that last word. 

“Shields?” Smitty broke in again. David frowned at him. Really? But Smitty seemed genuinely curious, and he was old enough that Talents wouldn’t have been a required lesson topic when he was still in school. 

“We all shield. Keeps the noise manageable.” He gestured at the rest of the room. “Lindy’s shields are really good, I can only feel anything from him if he wants me to.”

“Isn’t he a lower level Talent than you?” Nealer of all people piped up. His hair was looking especially messy today, and it looked dumber than normal too, David noted perhaps a little meanly. But seriously, he wanted to go home, and these assholes were not letting him. 

David blinked at him. “Yes...?”

“So how can he shield against you? I thought like, higher level Talents were stronger and shit.”

“I do have a stronger Talent than Lindy.” David agreed. “What does that have to do with anything?”

Nealer made a helpless, confused gesture with his hands. “So like. Shouldn’t you be able to break past his shields?”

David flinched, before glaring. Gio, he was pleased to note, was also giving Nealer a look of death. At least _someone_ had listened to the lecture on Talent ethics.

“First off,” David started, voice tightly controlled, “that is a disgusting suggestion and I have known Talents who would break your nose for suggesting they would ever do such a thing.” Once upon a time, David would have been one of them. He’d had a bit of a temper when he was a teenager. David took a deep breath, trying to convince his muscles to relax. Nealer hadn’t meant it badly, it had just been a question. “Secondly, Talent level has nothing to do with shields.” He gestured at Nealer. “ _You_ could build shields if you wanted, any of you could if you tried. It’s just mental exercises, training your brain a certain way. But mostly only Talents bother because we need them to keep the mental noise manageable. Nulls just do it if they really don’t want anyone to read their mind.” 

Nealer blinked, but didn’t say anything more. David would take it- knowing someone didn’t mean harm didn’t mean it didn’t still sting, being accused of something like that. 

“And Lindy’s shields?” Smitty prompted, voice deliberately light. 

“Are very, very good.” David took another breath, and let himself be distracted. “He’s put a lot of work into them.” 

“Huh.” Smitty looked thoughtful, and David really hoped he hadn’t set up Lindy for a matching interrogation. Lindy had never explained to David why his shields were so good, if it wasn’t a matter of feeling like he needed to guard against more powerful Talents. David had quietly decided not to push it, but Smitty might. 

David paused for a moment, and through the link that was still present, tapped Lindy’s mind in a ping for attention. Lindy hummed, pinging attentiveness back. _:Fair warning, the guys have been asking me about us and our Talents, so watch out for interrogations.:_ He warned, keeping his tone light but with an undercurrent to make sure that his seriousness carried across. Lindy snorted. 

_:They know I got kicked out of Talent classes for being hopeless, right? I’m not gonna be able to tell them more than you.:_ He even laughed a little as he said it. David hid a frown. Lindy wasn’t hopeless! He told him as much, and Lindy sent a wordless chuckle, wrapped around a tangled sense of amusement and gratitude and assurance. _:Don’t worry about it. I’d rather be here anyway.:_

 _With David_ , David’s traitorous heart filled in hopefully. He shoved it down. Now was _not_ the time. 

“That’s pretty cool.” Smitty was saying as David switched from mental to physical conversation. David nodded in agreement. It was, actually. Unsettling as _fuck_ to most other Talents, but still pretty cool. No one would ever accuse Lindy of not being dedicated- another point in the Lindy isn’t hopeless column. He relayed that to Lindy as well. Because if no one else was going to tell Lindy these things, David was happy to pick up the slack. Someone should. (He ignored the little part of him that wished he could tell Lindy these things in a more... personal manner. He’d take what he had and be grateful for it, damnit.)

Lindy laughed at that, amusement like wind chimes ringing in David’s head. It took a concentrated effort for David to not let a very stupid smile spread across his face. He loved making Lindy laugh. Then he had to pause. Lindy hadn’t moved in several minutes- far longer than it took to retrieve a roll of tape. 

_:Are you... hiding in the storeroom?:_

_:No, why would you think that?:_ The words were innocent and very obviously insincere. 

_:You are!:_ David laughed internally. _:You’re hiding from our teammates? Lindy, what would Coach say?:_

 _:Good on me for not getting sucked into an interrogation by our crazy teammates?:_ Lindy’s tone was dry, and felt like the wind rustling through a tree’s branches. It was still beautiful. 

God, but David loved Lindy’s mind. 

...That thought, he kept buried deep. 

_:I see how it is.:_ He ‘pathed, instead of anything more embarrassing. _:You’re going to just abandon me to the mercies of our teammates’ curiosity.:_

 _:Yeah, pretty much.:_ Lindy agreed, completely pitiless. _:Shouldn’t have let them corner you. Rookie mistake.:_ He was laughing at David again. 

David let a helpless smile tug at his lips. It was a really nice laugh, even if it was at his expense. 

“Wait, are you talking to him right now?” Smitty interrupted. David blinked, shocked back to his own body and senses, and realized he’d definitely missed part of the conversation. That’s what he got for letting himself get distracted by Lindy, he supposed. 

“Yes?” He said hesitantly. Maybe that made them uncomfortable? Too late, might as well roll with it. “I wanted to warn him that our teammates are a bunch of prying assholes.” He added, more confident in this, letting a sly smile soften the chirp. 

Smitty smacked his shoulder, but laughed. “I’m sure he already knows that.” 

David shrugged. “Still. You guys done with the questions?” 

Gio cut in for the first time in ages. “Yeah, we’re done. Sorry Ritter, just wanted to make sure everything was ok.” David nodded in acceptance, and they left him alone, the team slowly filtering out now that the show was over. He tapped Lindy again. 

_:Coast is clear.:_ He ‘pathed. Lindy ‘pathed amused gratitude back. 

_:Cool. Be right back, you didn’t warn me the trainers had it out for me.:_

David just sent a sense like a shrug of his shoulders. _:Sorry?:_

He could feel Lindy shaking his head. _:Nah man, just giving you shit. Don’t worry about it.:_ David smiled again. 

_:Ok.:_

* * *

It became something of a Thing, after that, David knowing where Lindy was and vice versa. The team tested it incessantly over the next couple of days, even going so far as to send Lindy on some ridiculous errand and making David report where he was the whole journey. 

They told the team to cut it out, after that, because seriously? Then it was more of just a thing, lowercase. Want to find Lindy? Ask Ritter. Ritter’s wandered off? Lindy will know where he is. 

Truth be told, David didn’t mind. The tests had been annoying, but the rest of it was pretty ok, as far as he was concerned. It didn’t bother him, and it could sometimes be nice, to be considered a package deal with Lindy. This was not helping his ill fated crush, but he didn’t like to acknowledge that.

Besides, David was a bit busy dealing with a different issue.

Talents didn’t often touch anyone, much less each other. They especially didn’t do so without permission. It wasn’t just rude, it had the potential to be incredibly invasive. Even when dealing with unshielded people, Talents or nulls, Talents could usually only pick up the surface level thoughts. At least, until they touched them. Physical contact brought mental closeness, and with it, the ability to brush aside surface thoughts and to get right to the heart of the person. Not exactly a nice thing to do. 

As such, Talents tried to avoid skin to skin contact with each other, and David was no exception. He wouldn’t refuse a handshake, but he didn’t initiate. Same with hugs, at least off the ice- pads were useful for more than just stopping pucks. So yeah, touching... wasn’t really a thing he did. 

At least, he hadn’t, until Lindy. 

With Lindy, it was like he couldn’t _stop_ touching him. 

It was just... so easy. Lindy had gone from flinching away from even brushing arms to leaning into David every time they were close. It was intoxicating. It was so simple, to throw an arm over Lindy’s shoulders, or ruffle his hair, or sit with their shoulders pressed close together. There was no reason _not_ to, really, when their minds were already linked, the barriers to touch already broken.

Lindy made it easy. 

That _definitely_ didn’t help David get over Lindy, but he’d almost given up on that now. Maybe someday, he’d wake up and it would have faded, become nothing more than friendship, but that day was not now. 

Not when his heart still tried to beat out of his ribs every time he hugged Lindy and Lindy let him, returned it, smiling like there was nowhere else he’d rather be. 

Not when every day, he barely had to ask before Lindy was already there, in his mind, and he was in Lindy’s. 

Not when those storm dark eyes softened every time David smiled at him. 

David was so, so not getting over his crush any time soon. 

So instead, David went the other way, and lost himself in it. Let himself link with Lindy, make Lindy smile, laugh, lean into him and hug him and look at him. David didn’t think Lindy liked him the same way- Lindy didn’t seem to like _anyone_ that way, David hadn’t seen him pick up once in the months he’d been in Calgary, despite being very single- but he still _liked_ David, he was still his friend and a bastion of Talented understanding in a world where David had very little. And that wasn’t something David was used to, at all. 

He maybe went a little overboard, as a result. Spending time with the team quickly became David and Lindy spending time with the team. David gravitated to Lindy- he couldn’t help it, it was just. So nice. To have another Talent, to have a Talent with a beautiful mind that didn’t mind sharing with him, to have _Lindy_ leaning in to him and laughing and smiling and generally reminding David with every bit of his existence that he was _perfect_...

Yeah. David was crushing _hard_. 

He couldn’t bring himself to mind. Or even try to stop. 

Especially not when... at home, trying to cook dinner, he jerked upright at feeling something that felt very much like _Lindy_ brush against his shields. It was only for a moment, but that was enough. David heart hammered, and he had to swallow back hope. 

_:Lindy?:_

No response. 

He tried again. Maybe he’d just imagined it?

_:Lindy?:_

Still nothing. 

Still, David couldn’t shake the feeling that it had been real. That Lindy’s mind had found his, all the way across town. It had certainly _felt_ like Lindy, a soft ping against David’s shield that hummed the way Lindy did when he was relaxed, happy. 

David wanted it to be real. If it was, then it meant Lindy was getting stronger- another point in David’s running tally of all the ways Lindy wasn’t hopeless with Talent- and might be open to broadening their link. If he was reaching out for David at home, he might miss David as much as David missed him. 

But though he waited all evening, there was never another ping. It was like it had never happened at all.

* * *

The next day, Lindy walked into practice looking like absolutely nothing unusual had happened last night. That alone would have been enough to make David think he was imagining things, except... there was a flicker in Lindy’s eyes, something that wasn’t the usual, and David found himself speaking before he could even stop to think. 

“Think you’re getting stronger, Lindy.” He poked Lindy’s shoulder as he sat next to him, even that touch enough to make him feel warm and tingly. It was enough to get Lindy’s shields to part and allow David to link in, and he kept going mentally. It was just easier- not to mention less opportunity for one of their teammates (Matty) to eavesdrop and find out something David would rather they didn’t. _:I think I felt you brush my shields last night, at home.:_

Lindy turned bright red. Definitely not just his imagination, then. Then Lindy started apologizing, _again_. David didn’t know _where_ Lindy had picked up the idea that he was a bother, especially with his Talent, but he wanted to kill it with _fire_. 

He waved the apology away with a nonchalance he didn’t actually feel. _:Don’t apologize, that’s awesome! Didn’t you tell me that you got excused from classes after awhile because your Talent was so weak they decided that it wasn’t worth working with you anymore? So now, if you’re getting stronger, that means they were full of shit!:_ Ok, so maybe he wasn’t doing a very good job of acting nonchalant about this, but seriously. Sometimes he thought that Lindy’s Talent teachers must have been completely _awful_ , with how Lindy was always putting himself down and apologizing for shit like this. 

_:Besides, if your range is increasing, that means we can talk more!:_ And now he was just being obvious. And pushing. David hid a groan at himself. He really wasn’t very good at this whole, let Lindy decide what he’s comfortable with thing, was he. 

_:Are you sure? I thought you might be getting sick of me.:_ Lindy ‘pathed. 

Which... that wasn’t a no. That wasn’t telling David to fuck off. David had to bite back a grin. This _definitely_ wasn’t going to make him like Lindy any less, but who cared about that? David certainly didn’t. 

_:Sick? Of you? Never!:_ David couldn’t contain his glee anymore, and bumped into Lindy’s shoulder, relishing in the closeness, the promise of _more_. 

_:You’ll regret that when I start streaming all of Nailed It into your head.:_ Lindy ‘pathed, dry and warm and amused as he leaned into David’s shoulder. His eyes were bright- it wasn’t often the sun came out from behind the storm clouds, but it did today. (God sometimes David hated how cheesy he could be, but it was hard not to be when someone like Lindy was in front of him.) David laughed. 

He was about to make another joke- something about how he could just stop paying for Netflix then, if Lindy was just gonna stream it for him- when he noticed Lindy’s attention shifting. He wasn’t sure Lindy had meant for him to hear that he was thinking about pointing out something to David but, well. They were linked, and it was hard not to overhear Lindy thinking his nickname. 

He jammed his fingers into Lindy’s ribs, because no one ever accused hockey players of being models of maturity. Besides, Lindy was an unticklish freak of nature. He didn’t even blink. 

_:Point out what?:_ He ‘pathed. Lindy didn’t say anything for a long moment, and David began poking along the edges of Lindy’s mind- nothing truly probing or invasive, just an obvious prod to get Lindy to say something. Lindy made a face at him, blocking the probes, because he was a freak of nature that was mentally ticklish, but not physically. It was a weird combo, but David was beginning to accept that that was just Lindy. 

And people said goalies were weird. 

David kept prodding, physically this time because he wasn’t trying to actually annoy Lindy. Just make him laugh, and maybe tell him what was on Lindy’s mind. Lindy snorted a little, but gave in, directing David to look at Matty. 

_:Got any idea what’s going on there? Because I think he can’t decide if he wants to pout or rip my head off.:_ Lindy asked, mind twisting humorously on the last sentence as he pondered how much Matty was not a pouter. Which, he was definitely right about that. David had to try not to laugh. 

Then, David made eye contact with Matty, and fuck. 

That was Matty’s actually hurt look. Not the over the top play acting he sometimes put on, but actual hurt. 

_’I meant you should tell him that you like him, not forget that anyone else exists.’_ The words echoed in David’s head and he had to force back a flinch. Matty had _definitely_ been looking up visualization exercises if his thoughts were being projected that clearly- and if he was projecting that loudly... Lindy had asked him something, David wasn’t sure what. His mind was kind of blanking right now as panic spread through him. All he knew was that he needed to do something, before Lindy found out that David was crushing on him via upset Matthew Tkachuk- not an ideal scenario in any world. 

_:You’re right. Matty isn’t really a pouter. Thanks, Lindy.:_ He ‘pathed absently, hoping he wasn’t giving anything else away. He needed to do something, he needed to fix this, but how? He couldn’t talk to Matty while being linked to Lindy, not when his feelings for said person were about to feature prominently in the conversation. He stood, dropping the link and throwing up his shields (which came more easily than usual, he’d apparently subconsciously learned something from Lindy) as he did so. 

It took a moment for him to realign his brain from the sudden shift of linked to alone, but safely joining and leaving other minds was one of the first things they taught telepathic Talents, so his stride barely faltered before he was back on track. He heard a sudden noise from behind him, like maybe Lindy dropped something. David winced- that had been kind of a dick move on his part, but Lindy should be able to recover from it pretty quickly, and he’d apologize later. 

He was going to be making a lot of apologies, it looked like. 

Matty’s face was not welcoming, but he didn’t actually try to punch David or anything, which in Matty terms meant he wasn’t happy but wasn’t about to commit murder. David sat down next to him. 

“I think I need to apologize.” He started. Matty snorted. 

“No shit.” His shoulders were tense and he wasn’t actually making eye contact with David. Normally, David wouldn’t push, but if Matty was upset enough to project his thoughts all over the locker room David couldn’t afford to let it be. 

Not unless he wanted a much bigger explosion later. Defusing the Tkachuk bomb, he thought to himself, biting back a snort before Matty could hear and get the wrong idea. 

David offered him a small smile. “Sorry.” He said quietly. “I did not mean to ignore you.” Matty huffed. 

“You were doing a pretty good job of it.” He grumbled. He still wouldn’t look at David. 

David didn’t dare wrap an arm around him like he usually would. Matty wasn’t ignoring him, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t give David a black eye if he pushed too far. And right now, everything about Matty was screaming ‘touch me and die’ so David didn’t. 

“Yeah. I... got caught up in things. I did not realize that I was ignoring you.” He continued. 

Matty snorted, rolling his eyes. 

“How do I make it up to you?” 

That was a dangerous question, with someone like Matthew Tkachuk. But, well. Matty was David’s best friend on the team (Lindy was in his own, undefinable category), and that did mean something to David. He’d do a lot to keep Matty’s friendship. 

Even a humiliating forfeit.

Matty gave him a raised eyebrow and a smirk- and that was why they were best friends. Matty was as null as it was possible to be and could still read David’s mind. 

Practice started before he could say anything more. David wasn’t sure if he was grateful for that. Giving Matty time to think was a bad, bad plan. 

Fortunately, Coach had decided to run them hard today, which meant no one had much brain power or time to think up schemes. Unfortunately, it meant David had to try and apologize in snippets between drills while also avoiding Lindy for fear of giving something away. It turned out not to be difficult to dodge Lindy- he wasn’t dealing very well with the cut link and that was taking all of his attention. Which was... not good. Maybe David had accidentally overloaded it in his panic and that was why he hadn’t been able to adjust?

Shit. David was going to have to apologize _so much_. 

Matty didn’t say much to him during practice, but he didn’t push David away when David skated up next to him. David didn’t have much to say either, really, just more apologies, but he said them anyway. Besides, he knew Matty. He’d probably prefer to pretend nothing had even happened, at least until the next time David did something that upset him. 

David would rather they sort this out now. It was better for everyone. 

After practice, he nudged Matty. “Come over to mine. We need to actually talk.” 

Matty made a face. “I hate your apartment.” He grumbled. “Come over to mine.” 

David didn’t mention that his apartment had been perfectly fine at the beginning of the season. Letting Matty have his way might not be a good life philosophy, but it probably applied here, as the injured party or however he wanted to put it. Instead, David just nodded so fast he thought he might have sprained something. “Yeah, of course.” He paused, hesitated. “It’s not because I have a crush on someone else, is it?” 

He didn’t think it was- Matty was a little shit, not a complete asshole, but it was still better to check. 

Matty’s double take was comical. “What dude, no way, what the fuck? I’m not that kind of asshole!” David had to snort a little as Matty echoed his thoughts.

“I know.”

“It wouldn’t work anyway, you know I’m not into guys.” Matty continued. “And of course I want you to be happy, it’s easier to give you shit if you’re happy.” 

“So nice.” David deadpanned back. 

Matty just grinned at him, and David’s shoulders relaxed slightly. 

He might still have to do something embarrassing, but they’d get through this. He threw an arm around Matty’s shoulders and scrubbed a hand through his hair, laughing as Matty playfully tried to shove him off. 

They didn’t talk on the car ride over. It didn’t seem like the place, and David was tired. He followed Matty into his apartment, and sat on the couch when Matty pointed. Matty flopped down next to him, and they sat in silence for a long moment. 

It was very awkward. 

David was trying to come up with something other than just more apologies when Matty finally heaved a sigh. “Alright, man, what gives?”

David blinked at him. Matty rolled his eyes again. “That means it’s time for you to explain shit.” He said, falsely patient. 

“Ah.” David ducked his head for a second, trying to find the words in English. Being around Lindy had really spoiled him, in many ways. He missed being able to just speak and trust that people would understand his thoughts. 

“I really am sorry, I didn’t mean to ignore you.” He figured that was a good place to start. 

Matty flicked a hand. “So you’ve said. I want to know _why_ , dude.”

And that... that’s harder. Not because of his crush on Lindy, Matty knows about that. It’s the rest of it that’s hard to put into words, especially to someone who isn’t Talented. 

“You know it was a big deal, when I left FT&T.” David starts. Matty nodded impatiently. 

“Yeah no shit, it was all anyone talked about for months.” 

David grimaced. That hadn’t been fun. He was lucky for having the teammates he did. There were some who would have resented that, resented him, for drawing the attention away from the actual hockey they were playing. But not the Flames. They’d been chill about things, tried to make him feel welcome. 

“I pissed a lot of people off by doing that.” David continued. “A lot of Talents.” He hesitated, and then sighed and just went for it. “I lost a lot of friends, when I picked hockey.” Matty blinked. 

“Really?” David nodded and sighed again, trying to come up with a way to explain it. 

“What I was, before I went pro was kind of like... If you had gotten drafted by the Flames, and instead of going to play for them said, hey fuck you, I’m gonna go... I don’t know, open a bakery or something? That’s how people reacted to me not working for FT&T. I made a lot of people, including people close to me, people I’d grown up with and grown up with the idea of working with, very very mad.” David said, fumbling his words as he tried to explain why it had been a problem.

“One, I’d never open a bakery, what the fuck.” Matty shook his head. “And two, what the fuck dude, you had shitty friends.” 

David huffed a laugh. “It was just an example, don’t worry.” Matty did something complicated with his eyebrows, that David was pretty sure was supposed to tell David he noticed he wasn’t answering the rest of it. David sighed. 

“Not really. They just wanted different things in life, and they felt...” He groped for the words. “Betrayed, I think? ...Disappointed, maybe? That I had spent so long with them, working to be one thing, and then said no.” He shrugged. “I’m ok with it now.” 

Matty frowned and threw an arm around his shoulder, yanking him close. “Well I’m not. I’m pretty sure even my imaginary bakery would have gotten more support from my friends than you got, that’s what friends do.” 

David shrugged again. 

“Talents are a really close community, especially the FT&T ones. They’re super social too. It’s a whole thing, and I fucked off and left. Most of them don’t even acknowledge me anymore.” 

Matty’s frown deepened. “Still shitty.” 

David couldn’t bring himself to disagree. He may not think his old friends were terrible people, but it had still hurt a lot, the way they’d cut him out. Matty shook his head. 

“Anyway. So you had really shitty friends growing up. How does that explain the Lindy thing?” 

“Told you, Talents are really social. It was nice, having another Talent around.” 

Matty’s frown slid into a sleazy grin. “Especially one you want to fuck, right?” 

David made a face. “It wasn’t really about that.” Matty raised an eyebrow. David could feel his ears turning red. “I mean, it helped? But mostly I was just really excited to have someone around, in...” He tapped a finger against his temple. “Here.”

Matty wrinkled his nose. “You _like_ having people in your head the whole time?” He shuddered. “That sounds awful, dude.”

David laughed. “It’s a Talent thing, I think. We don’t like being alone.” 

Matty raised both eyebrows, this time. “...You play hockey. Everyone lives up each other’s asses all season, man.” 

“But I was alone up here, it felt empty.” David gestured to his head again. “I could hear you guys a bit, but it’s not the same as having someone to talk to.” 

“You play _hockey_.” Matty repeated. “Skulls are always empty, get used to it.” He was smirking now. 

David rolled his eyes. “Not like that, dumbass. Just because you don’t have a brain...” 

Matty shoved him, laughing. “Fuck you too! So, what, you mind melded with Lindy and that made you want to bone?” 

David shrugged. “I guess?” It was more complicated than that and also involved feelings, which weren’t Matty’s favorite topic. Plus, talking about how pretty Lindy’s eyes were was just going to get him chirped into the next century so. He’d pass, thanks. 

Matty laughed harder. David sighed. 

“I won’t start ignoring you again.” He said quietly. Matty’s laughter cut off. His eyes were piercing as they met David’s, and Jesus, sometimes it really felt like, of the two of them, Matty should be the Talent. He had a way of looking at people that demanded they cut the bullshit- not that he used it much, being a great fan of bullshitting. 

(David maybe had a type. On the surface, Matty and Lindy couldn’t have been more different, Matty crazy and wild and in everyone’s face while Lindy seemed content to let attention pass him by unless he was on the ice, but... They had the same eyes. The same tendency to almost look through him, when they wanted to. It wasn’t the color, but the clarity of their gazes, the way a single look from one of them could reach through all his defenses and hit him right in the heart. And yeah, crushing on Matty had been a bad idea, but David still loved him. Matty was his best friend, and nothing would change that. 

He ignored that Lindy could do the same thing, and that David definitely did not harbor only friendly feelings. This wasn’t the time for that- or any revelations thereof.) 

Matty was silent for a long, long moment. Then he grinned, and punched David in the shoulder hard enough to make his arm go dead. 

“You’d better not, fucker. Next time, I won’t settle for just giving you a headache. Now, let’s get you some hot Swedish dick.” 

David rubbed his arm and smiled. 

Matty was a good friend.

* * *

The next few days at practice, David ended up having to give Lindy space. He hadn’t wanted to- he’d tried so many times to talk to Lindy. To apologize, to explain, to make sure Lindy was ok. Lindy was still obviously out of sorts from the link break, and David wanted to make sure he’d be alright. David didn’t even dare try to link with him- disrupting the equilibrium of a mind trying to resettle itself would just make things worse. But he honestly just wanted to talk. 

Lindy didn’t, though. He wasn’t obvious about it- he’d never been obvious about it- but he’d reverted to their earlier patterns, dodging David without ever appearing to avoid him. David only noticed because he’d seen the pattern the first time around- the rest of the team probably just assumed they were spending time in each other’s heads instead of sitting together. 

Hopefully this time, it was just until Lindy’s mind steadied out and he wasn’t worried about David throwing him off anymore. David was still going to have to apologize _so_ much, but they’d be able to work it out, if it was just Lindy needed to recover from his brain getting rattled. At least Lindy seemed on track to be fine by game day- David might actually have gotten in trouble if he messed up one of their top line forwards for the actual game. 

But it had also given David some more time to spend with Matty, which had been good. He’d meant what he said, about not forgetting about Matty again, and reestablishing their friendship before David started sharing brain space with Lindy again was a good idea. 

Matty seemed to appreciate it, sitting next to David in his stall as they got ready to play and ribbing him about how he just needed to show Lindy what he was missing- namely, David’s dick- and how Matty was glad it wasn’t _him_ David wanted to share a brain with, “because there’s some things no one needs to know”. 

Which was _entirely_ false because Matty had been bugging David for details basically the moment they met.

David didn’t notice when Lindy walked into the locker room. 

That was the first red flag. 

He didn’t feel anything until he looked up, trying to figure out why Lindy was late. 

He wasn’t. 

David just couldn’t feel him. At all. 

Somehow, Lindy’s shields had gotten even _thicker_. How was that possible? Lindy had already been a goddamn void to Talent when he wanted to be, and now he was just gone. 

Maybe he was still recovering? 

Gently, trying not to cause any more problems, David tapped on Lindy’s shields. It felt a lot like trying to knock on a thickly padded wall, the touch just absorbed without so much as a sound. Lindy didn’t even twitch. 

That was the second red flag. 

Lindy’s eyes (why did they look red?) slid past David’s without pause or recognition. They didn’t even flicker as Lindy’s gaze came to rest on Coach, silent and attentive. 

That was when David knew for sure that something was very, very wrong. 

He tapped again, harder. Nothing. Not even a ping- he wasn’t sure Lindy even _felt_ David’s attempt to get his attention. His eyes were a very cool gray as he sat in silence listening to Coach. David felt a knot start to grow in the pit of his stomach. 

What had _happened_?

David didn’t know, and he was scared to find out. 

They won the game that night- in no small part thanks to Lindy’s efforts. It would have been amazing... If it weren’t for the way every time David watched him hit the ice, the knot in his stomach grew. 

Because Lindy was playing well, had gotten a goal already, but...

The way he was playing was nothing like he usually played. Lindy was a finesse player, a goal scorer, not a grinder. Yet, the way he was throwing his body around was making David ache just to watch.

Lindy had also spent more time in the penalty box than the rest of the team combined, his eyes hard and cold and _angry_ as he took penalty after penalty, blood dripping from a split lip that he kept biting, kept bleeding. 

The player Lindy had tripped hissed something at Lindy as he went to serve his third and final penalty of the night, and Lindy grinned back. 

It wasn’t a nice grin. David felt a shiver go down his spine, and it took everything he had to stop the chances on the ensuing power play, as he kept darting glances down at the void in the box. Lindy wasn’t even moving, just... Sitting completely still, eyes tracking the play with perfect, icy focus as he waited for the minutes to tick down. 

He assisted on the game winning goal the second he was out of the box. 

David watched them celly- the others, that was. Lindy participated in the hug, to be sure, but David could still see his eyes, and they weren’t happy. 

They weren’t... Anything. And somehow, David felt like this was his fault. That when he’d cut the link in his panic to keep Lindy from hearing Matty shout about David’s crush, he’d cut more than the link between their brains. 

That somehow, he’d cut _Lindy_. 

After the game, Lindy gave everyone that same, bloody, terrifying grin. David could hear Johnny’s squeak- the rest of them weren’t much better, honestly, even if they managed to keep from voicing it out loud. 

No one suggested they celebrate the win. David didn’t blame them, not when Lindy was sitting there, perfectly calm and composed and feeling like a goddamn fucking hurricane (ha. Sometimes David hated himself, this was not the time for puns) as the trainers tended to his split lip. In fact, many of them fled as soon as they could, with only a few sticking it out. 

He could see Gio glancing over, mind churning as he tried to determine if he needed to intervene. David wanted to grab him, tell him to stop, because Lindy looked like he’d take the hand off of the next person to try and touch him- when Hanny stepped in. 

He didn’t even looked phased by Lindy, just grabbing him by the elbow and towing him out without even a blink. David would never admit it, but he wasn’t sure he’d be so calm in Hanny’s place. They’d never seen Lindy angry before, and it was terrifying. 

Lindy’s eyes met David’s for just a second, and for the first time today there was something softer in them. Something approachable. David stood, almost on autopilot, called by those eyes. Then Lindy looked away and the moment snapped. The two left immediately

Those of the team that were left seemed to heave a sigh of relief the second Lindy was gone- he hadn’t done anything, said anything, but it was like his very presence had filled up the locker room until they all felt about to burst. 

(Which was. Odd, if David was honest. Lindy was almost never in a bad mood, and this was well beyond any display of temper they’d seen before. He also wasn’t the type to make anyone else uncomfortable, or even demand people’s attention the way he had tonight without even a word. 

Lindy had the presence of an actual hurricane when he wanted to, it turned out, and it was goddamn unnerving.)

Smitty was the first one to say anything. “Well. What the fuck was that?” 

Everyone’s eyes turned to David, which was a little unfair, he felt. He’d known Lindy for the exact amount of time they had! The only one who knew Lindy from before was Hanny, and Hanny was gone, handling whatever it was that had turned Lindy into the incarnation of a storm. 

David shrugged. “I don’t know.” He said quietly. 

“Really?” Smitty pressed. 

David’s lips thinned. “I’m just as confused as you guys.” He didn’t quite snap the words, but it was a near thing. He was also really, really fucking worried and had no clue what had happened to make Lindy feel like that. 

Unless... He felt the blood drain from his face and he had to duck his head before anyone could get a look at him. 

Unless Lindy _had_ heard what Matty had been mentally shouting. 

Unless Lindy wasn’t ok with that, with _David_.

Unless Matty had freaked him out and David had made everything worse by cutting the link so fast that Lindy’s brain had given out a little. That could... that could happen. That was a thing that happened, when higher level Talents lost control, even a little. 

Oh god. What if David had done damage?

What if he’d fucked Lindy up permanently? 

David wanted to throw up. He’d been so worried that Lindy had been hurt before, only to turn around and maybe hurt Lindy himself. He’d promised he wouldn’t, he’d promised he’d be careful. 

He had to talk to Lindy. 

He had to apologize, and make sure Lindy got the help he might (oh god please don’t let him have damaged Lindy’s brain, his Talent...)

He’d take Lindy being upset about David’s crush over that, anything but that...

Someone was talking to him- David blinked, and looked up. Smitty was looking at him, eyebrows wrinkled in concern. 

“Ritter, you ok?” 

David swallowed and nodded. “I’m fine.” Smitty didn’t look like he believed him, but didn’t press, thank god, just finished changing and left, shooting David one more look over his shoulder. David waved him off with a smile. 

Matty was just looking at him, eyebrow quirked. David shrugged back, and Matty flopped down next to him. 

“Wanna explain that now that the nosy fuckers are gone?” He drawled, and David just shrugged again. 

“I still don’t know anything.” He said quietly. “Lindy hasn’t talked to me all week.”

Matty’s other eyebrow joined the first. “Huh.”

David frowned. “What?”

Matty just shook his head. “Dunno, man.” The glint in his eyes said otherwise, but David didn’t press. Matty would share his thoughts or he wouldn’t in his own time. Pushing it would probably only lead to regret.

* * *

The next day at practice, Lindy wasn’t angry anymore. 

Then again, Lindy didn’t seem to be... anything, anymore. 

At least, not to David. 

David had to swallow hard, leaning heavily on Matty, when Lindy- or rather, the empty space where Lindy’s bright, beautiful mind used to be- walked into the room. 

Matty had smirked at him. “Decided I’m the better crush after all?” He’d teased, and David...

David burst out laughing. It wasn’t exactly full of humor- it bordered on hysterical, actually, as a week’s worth of emotions boiled over all at once over the very old, very shitty, very familiar joke.

Matty was smiling at him- a quiet, fond thing that said he knew exactly how much David was feeling right now and he’d definitely made that joke to make David let some of that loose. David slumped into him as his laughter finally died. 

“You’re an ass.” He huffed quietly. Matty snorted, his mind radiating _’No shit’_. David rolled his eyes, darting a glance over at Lindy. 

There was nothing in his eyes. No storm, no sky, no light. They were just... Empty, as empty as the space in David’s mind where Lindy should be, and David’s heart _hurt_. Before he even realized it, he was reaching out, anything to get that look out of Lindy’s eyes, but it was no use. Lindy’s shields were just too strong, and it left David overreaching, stumbling over his own mind as he tried to find something that just wasn’t there anymore. 

David leaned harder into Matty, who wrapped an arm around him without a word, letting him recollect himself. He didn’t say anything, this time. This wasn’t the kind of mood David could be teased out of. 

That day, David ended up thickening his own shields. It just hurt too much, sensing the empty spaces where Lindy was supposed to be, so David stopped trying to feel it. It was just... Easier, to block it off and let himself fall back into old rhythms with Matty. It hurt less (meant he wasn’t worried about hurting Lindy even more).

(He didn’t see Lindy looking at him as he looked away. Then again, Lindy didn’t seem to see him at all, so how could he have known?)

He kept his shields tight every day after, too. 

He didn’t want to feel what lay outside them.

Matty ribbed him about it, but didn’t make him take them back down- not that he could have, anyway. Matty also thought David should try talking to Lindy, and that just... That just wasn’t a good idea. David told Matty as much. Matty threatened to lock them both in a closet. 

Fortunately, before Matty could get further than threats (or maybe promises was the better term? Matty didn’t often threaten things he wasn’t absolutely willing to go through with) they were heading out on a road trip.

* * *

David didn’t hook up often. 

Most of the time, it simply wasn’t appealing- it was impossible to stay out of someone’s mind while they were so entwined physically, and that often ended up feeling invasive rather than intimate. He also always had to be clear about this fact to people he wanted to hook up with- consent was hugely important, and that meant consenting to all aspects of what was taking place. The reactions to this had run the gamut of disgusted to a little _too_ interested, and neither boded well for a successful hookup. 

This was without even touching the necessity of finding an interested guy that didn’t recognize him and run the risk of being outed. David’s face was nowhere near as well known as Matty or Johnny’s, but his play this last year had started attracting people’s attention- enough that a fan would have a decent chance of recognizing him. David wasn’t ashamed of liking guys, and he knew the guys would be supportive (Matty would murder them if they weren’t) but that didn’t mean he wanted even more of a spotlight trained on him. He’d garnered enough attention just by being a Talent playing hockey, he really didn’t need to be the trifecta of first gay, high level Talent, and hockey player. It sent shivers down his spine, the thought of that level of scrutiny. As such, he kept all of his infrequent hooking up to their road trips. His chances of being recognized in Calgary were slowly rising, but on the road he was still just a guy with a foreign accent.

With all of that, it wasn’t surprising that David didn’t hook up often. It was just... A lot to deal with, and most of the time he just didn’t feel like navigating that mess. 

In fact, he hadn’t been planning on hooking up at all tonight. He just hadn’t been feeling it, even after the win- that just made him want to go out with the guys, get drunk half on the beer and half on the victory. He’d gotten halfway there- he was starting to feel the alcohol, slumped into Matty and laughing as Sean and Johnny tried to dance- when the guy caught his eye. 

He was leaning on the bar, broad shoulders relaxed, head tipped back in a laugh. David blinked slowly, lazy with all the good feelings emanating from the room. Being around a bunch of happy, tipsy people was a high all it’s own to a Talent.

He wondered, absently, if Lindy could feel it too. 

Thinking of Lindy was as good as dousing David in cold water. Hurt and guilt and sadness all tangled up into a ball of bad feeling that was more effective than ice at killing any good mood he might have had. 

Lindy was around, somewhere. David didn’t know where- couldn’t feel him to know. He’d been smiling, earlier, but who knew how he was really feeling?

Certainly not David. 

Matty had felt David tense up, and now was peering at him, eyes hazy from the shots he’d been doing. David looked back. He didn’t know what Matty saw in his eyes, but it was enough to make Matty’s gaze sharpen. 

David braced himself for an uncomfortable conversation. 

Instead, Matty just smirked. “Well? What are you waiting for?” 

David blinked. Matty knew he was gay, but he couldn’t remember a time Matty had ever been so blatantly encouraging. He shrugged. 

“That’s what I thought. C’mon, how long has it been since you got laid?” Matty’s words should not be that clear, he’d drank more than David, and David was definitely feeling the shots he’d taken. He could also feel Matty’s slightly exasperated fondness, seeping through where they were slumped together.

David just shrugged again in response to the question. He wasn’t going to open himself up to chirping _that_ easily. 

Matty just laughed and shoved David off his shoulder. “Get the fuck out of here.” _’At least one of us should get laid tonight.’_

Well. Alright, then. 

David hadn’t been planning on hooking up, but the idea was growing on him now. He knew at least some of it was due to the lingering echoes of Matty’s mind, prodding him with how much fun it would be, but. Well. It _had_ been a while. 

Since before Lindy, actually. 

David winced as the thought flitted across his brain, but firmed his resolve. It would be hard to get over Lindy, the way he knew he needed to, and maybe this would help. 

With that in mind, he approached the guy.

* * *

If David had been honest, he hadn’t expected to actually hook up, even after deciding to try. Most of the time, guys that hung out in the kinds of bars the team went to were straight. Hazard of the profession. 

Leaning down to bite at his hookup’s lips as he fucked into him, David had to concede he’d been wrong, and happily so. The guy hadn’t even cared about the Talent thing- he’d laughed it off- and they’d ended up back at David’s hotel room soon after, and in his bed immediately after that. 

David hadn’t forgotten how good sex felt- that wasn’t the kind of thing that one forgot- but it was still nice to have the reminder. Fucking someone wasn’t the best feeling in the world- that was reserved for the best links he’d ever made, the sense of completion and tightness that came with minds joined together as one, but it was still nice. 

David ignored the part of him that whispered that sex with Lindy wouldn’t just be _nice_ , it would be _amazing_ , the combination of the best things in the world in one heady package. David didn’t get to think about that- he’d lost that privilege. And yeah, tonight wasn’t going to go down as the best sex he’d ever had, but it still felt good. That was kind of the point. 

David would never know what it was that made him look deeply into the man’s eyes at that specific time. Intuition, maybe, or his Talent sensing something on a deeper level than his conscious mind could process. His eyes were brown, dark and hazy with pleasure, but as David looked, something _shifted_. They were the same color, but now something in them glinted sharp and bright, like the edge of an oncoming storm. Which was just... What? He might not have picked the guy solely for how much he didn’t look like Lindy, but that had definitely been a consideration. 

David slowed, brows furrowing as he tried to figure out why, and that was when he felt it- Lindy’s mind, crashing into his, emanating from David’s hookup. 

David had to freeze, or risk coming on the spot, as the pieces of possibly the most arousing thing to ever happen to him clicked into place. Somehow- David didn’t know how or why, and he didn’t really care if he was being honest- Lindy had ended up in the mind of David’s hookup. He had felt _everything_ David had been doing like it was his own body. _Fuck_. He drew in a shuddering breath as the thought crashed through him. Jesus, that was just. God. The guy shifted under him, muttering a complaint. David ignored it. There was nothing less important that he could think of, here and now, because _Lindy had been in David’s hookup’s mind as David fucked him_. And god but that was... That was just insanely hot. 

The fact that Lindy had done it in the first place, and that then he hadn’t left...

David swallowed hard against the hope clawing at his chest and reached out. _:Lindy?:_

This might go bad, but it could also go so, so good. 

_:Lindy, what are you doing?:_

For a long moment, there was nothing- he would almost think he’d imagined it, if not for the continuing gleam in the man’s eyes- and then the wave of panic hit. 

_:Sorry.:_ Lindy ‘pathed, mind sounding strained, before he was gone, shields cutting even the sense of him off before David could even ask if Lindy was ok. 

His hookup shifted under him, grunting in annoyance. “What the fuck dude.” 

David blinked. He’d more or less forgotten about him. Oops. “Sorry. Thought I heard something.” He mumbled, before mechanically finishing the guy off- he wasn’t interested anymore, not after such a tantalizing taste of what he _actually_ wanted- and sending him on his way. 

David fell asleep with only one thought on his mind. 

He had to talk to Lindy.

* * *

Talking to Lindy... Did not happen. 

At breakfast he looked so sick that David didn’t dare try and prod him too much, for fear of upsetting either his head or his stomach. On the bus ride, he looked even worse- no surprise, but also inconvenient. David figured he’d just leave him alone until the hangover cleared up; Lindy wasn’t exactly going to be going anywhere, David could afford to wait until Lindy felt capable of actually responding.

It wouldn’t be until they reached the airport, and Lindy regained some color, that David realized that Lindy’s ability to hold his stomach and a conversation at the same time might not be only obstacle to the talk David had planned. Lindy was still avoiding him, with even more fervor than before, it seemed. He ignored David’s attempts to catch his eye, his shields absorbing any attempts to get his attention via Talent, and disregarded anyone’s attempts to get him to talk. He looked... He looked upset, more than sick, now. 

David swallowed hard, this time against something much heavier than hope. He didn’t know if this was just an extension of Lindy’s avoidance of before, compounded by the awkwardness of accidentally seeing David having sex, or... something more. 

Something much, much worse. 

Either way, not a conversation to have on an airplane, he conceded, and went to sit with Matty. Who eyed him with a look that was, again, far too sharp for someone who’d drank as much as he had. “You do not look like someone who got laid last night.” He observed blandly. 

David shrugged. He’d found himself doing that a lot lately. He!d found himself unsure of what to say a lot recently. 

Matty sighed and settled back against the seat. “I’ll get it out of you later.” He promised- far too ominously, by David’s estimation. 

David just closed his eyes. Last night had not been particularly _restful_ , and sleep was definitely preferable to fielding interrogation attempts on a plane full of nosy teammates. Matty snorted at him, but let him nap. Thankfully. 

David needed to keep his strength up if he was ever going to survive what was looking more and more like it was going to be an unpleasant confrontation.

* * *

Practice was... uncomfortable was putting it lightly. 

Actually, David had taken pucks to the face that were nicer feeling than the locker room today. 

And Lindy, unsurprisingly, was right at the center of it- but unlike last time, when his fury had seemed omnipresent, everywhere and at everything, now it was...

Focused. Directed. Unnervingly cold.

And it was pointed right at David. 

David swallowed hard, as fears he had once dismissed as paranoia started to feel increasingly likely. 

What if Lindy hated gay people? 

David had wondered and dismissed that the first time. Hockey players weren’t always the most tolerant, but Talents tended to be accepting of any and all differences- hard to hold on to prejudices when you can feel that everyone is a person just like you. He’d thought that perhaps the Talent, the ability to feel another person’s thoughts like they were his own, would win out over the still entrenched homophobia of the sport they both played. 

Now, for the first time, David thought he might be wrong. 

He was terrified that he might be wrong. 

Lindy wasn’t even trying to hide his fury by the end of practice, and it showed in how quickly the room vacated. Matty had stayed the longest, nudging David and asking quietly if he was ok. David sent him off with a smile. He didn’t want witnesses for this conversation, no matter what the subject matter might end up being. He wasn’t afraid Lindy would attack him. He was afraid Lindy would break his heart, and that was something he’d rather do privately. 

Matty left with only one long look, _’Don’t do anything stupid,’_ hanging in the space between them. Once he was gone, David’s smile faded. The stupid thing had already been done. Now, he just had to find out what the fallout would be. 

Lindy met his eyes, and god, his eyes _hurt_. Cold and frozen and sharp, they swirled like a storm of ice. “I think we need to talk.” His voice was flat, only barely managing to conceal his emotions, and his shields were thick and barbed. 

David swallowed hard against the dread that sat heavy in his throat and nodded. “I- yeah. Lindy, about what you saw...” He started, hoping that maybe he could cut this off before it got too bad. 

Lindy interrupted him, voice icy as his eyes. “First off, please allow me to offer my deepest apologies for invading your privacy in such a manner.” Lindy said, startlingly formal. “It was reprehensible of me to probe in such a way, and then to linger as long as I did. It’s not an excuse, but I was very drunk and found it difficult to extract myself from his mind. I didn’t intend to spy on you, but I understand if you are upset with me for that.” His shoulders were stiff, but his voice was surprisingly sincere. 

David blinked, hard. That had not gone the way he’d been expecting, dreading. “Lindy, what? I don’t care, it was an accident, it’s fine.” His chest felt unaccountably light- if that was all, than this could be salvaged. If Lindy was just freaked out about being stuck in someone else’s head... He shook his head, drawing a breath-

“Thank you.” Lindy cut him off again, still formal and frozen. “Normally, I would never say anything of what I saw, as it was an invasion of your privacy. However, I don’t think I can just forget what I saw, and I definitely can’t keep this secret for you.” 

David’s stomach _twisted_ , and he could feel the blood draining from his face as Lindy’s words hit. 

It wasn’t as bad as he’d feared. 

It was _worse_.

He could have dealt with Lindy being homophobic. It would have _sucked_ , but he would have gotten over it- over _Lindy_ \- given time. 

But what Lindy was threatening now? No, not even threatening. _Stating_ , like it was a fact, like it was done.

That was something David could never come back from.

David wasn’t ashamed of being gay. He never had been. And he loved hockey with all his heart. He wanted to play for as long as he could, and that meant being aware of the faults of the league. The NHL remained one of the more homophobic sports leagues in the world. If Lindy did this, if Lindy outed him...

David’s career would be over. Not in an instant, no, but. It would die the death of a million GMs unwilling to sign a controversial player, of teams uncomfortable with the idea of being in a room with him. 

Lindy didn’t need to even touch him. Not when he could kill David’s spirit instead. 

“Oh god.” He breathed, trying not to choke. “Lindy, please, no.”

“It’s not right.” Lindy didn’t even sound angry anymore. Just... implacable. 

David staggered back from the force of it, sitting down hard. “Please.” He whispered again, heart heavy.

Lindy’s glare hardened. “How can you ask me to keep something so disgusting a secret?” He spat out, and David had to choke back a sob. _Disgusting_. The word rang in his ears. Lindy thought he was disgusting. 

“If you don’t tell, I _will_.”

David felt faint. He couldn’t believe it- Lindy wanted him to out _himself_? “I didn’t think you of all people would have a problem with it.” He said quietly. “Please don’t tell. I’ll do anything.” He felt his heart breaking.

Lindy threw his hands up, cold reserve breaking underneath heated anger. “In what universe would I ever be ok with that!” He nearly shouted. “I hate cheaters! Of course I’m going to have a problem with you fucking cheating on my fucking teammate!”

...what?

 _What_?

What the _fuck_?

This conversation had whiplashed twice in as many minutes, and David was getting a headache from all the mental flailing. 

“Cheating?” He repeated dumbly. 

“Yes, _cheating_. You know, when you sleep with someone other than the person you’re dating. Like what you did at that hotel.” Lindy spat at him. 

“What?” David abruptly got the feeling they were having two very different conversations. 

“I wanted to talk to you because I wanted to warn you that if you don’t tell him, I will. I can’t keep that kind of secret.” Lindy crossed his arms, face set in a dark glower. 

“Him?” David really would like to have a bit more explanation, here. 

“Yes, him. Chucky, you know, the guy you’re dating? The guy that you definitely weren’t sleeping with that night? Just because I don’t know him very well doesn’t mean I’m going to sit back and let him get hurt.” Lindy still scowled, though David couldn’t help but note that the icy fury was gone. 

Then he processed what Lindy had actually said. And. _What?!_ “You think I’m cheating on Chucky? Sorry, you think I’m dating Chucky?” He couldn’t help it. He started to laugh. 

“Yes?” Lindy blinked owlishly at him. David couldn’t stop laughing. 

“Chucky is straight, Lindy.” He forced out between chuckles. “Like, really, really straight.”

Lindy stared. “But you guys were always...” He waved a hand in a vague, all encompassing gesture. David wasn’t sure what it was meant to signify, but it spoke loudly all the same. 

And... Yeah, David was a bit closer to Matty than was usual, he knew that. But it didn’t actually change the fact that they were very much not dating. “Because we’re _friends_.” He didn’t have a better word for it than that.

Lindy’s eyebrow quirked incredulously. “I have never once had a friend like that.” He said dryly. 

David could feel his ears burning. “I... might have had a crush on him at one point But he let me down gently and now we’re just good friends.” He admitted, just _knowing_ his face was bright red. He took a deep breath. Did he dare? Lindy had seemed awfully invested in his relationship status... “I like someone else, actually. He likes to give me shit about it.” He paused, his heart in his throat. The only way that could be more obviously question bait was if he started broadcasting _’Ask me who I like!’_ Not that that would make it past Lindy’s shields, but... The point still stood.

Lindy... didn’t say anything. The pause stretched long and awkward, and not for the first time David missed being in Lindy’s head. This would be so much easier. The silence got longer. He gave up and cleared his throat. “You really thought we were dating?” 

“It really looked like you were and just didn’t want to be out yet.” Lindy said quietly. David shook his head. He couldn’t see it, but maybe that wasn’t the important bit here. No, the most pressing question now was...

“So you don’t have a problem with the gay thing?”

“What? No!” Lindy’s voice went shrill. “Is that what you thought? That I was threatening to out you?” He looked _horrified_. It eased something within him that David hadn’t even been aware was still tense.

“Well... you saw me having sex with a guy and then got really mad and yelled at me about it being disgusting, so...” David recited matter-of-factly, shrugging.

“Oh.” Lindy looked like the thought hadn’t even crossed his mind. “No, I don’t have a problem with gay people.” He hesitated for a second, but kept going. “I’m... bisexual, actually. So. No, no problems here.” Lindy seemed unable to make eye contact, gaze darting back and away before David could actually catch it. 

Then the words registered. And David smiled, a shot of pure hope going straight to his brain and lighting him up. Lindy was _bi_. That meant David had a chance! 

Or... He would if Lindy ever felt comfortable looking him in the eye again. Right now, odds weren’t good. 

“Thank you for telling me.” David said. That was the thing to do, when someone came out to you, right?

Lindy nodded, short and businesslike. “Anyway. That was why I wanted to talk to you.” He grabbed his bag. “I’ll see you around.”

And David was just... so not ready for this conversation to be over. There was so much more to discuss! 

“Wait!” He instinctively grabbed for Lindy. 

And Lindy. Flinched. 

It took everything David had not to flinch just from the sheer hurt that hit him in that moment. He had no right to be upset, but he’d thought... 

Well. It didn’t matter what he’d thought. Lindy was looking at him, and not leaving. David let his hand fall, and asked the question that had been plaguing him for weeks. 

“Why did you block me out? It can’t have been the sex, that only happened yesterday. You’ve been blocking me out for weeks.”

Lindy gave him a smile that looked more like his media face than anything real. “I thought you and Chucky had started dating. There are some things that no one needs to see.”i

David made himself laugh. that. “I. Ok, yeah, I can see why you would want to avoid that. But we aren’t, and...” He ducked his head, hardly able to believe he was about to admit this. “I really missed you, these past weeks.”

He had. It had been like losing a limb, Lindy’s sudden absence from his mind. 

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea.” Lindy said after a long pause.

“Why not?” David honestly didn’t understand. 

“It really hurt, the way you cut the link a while ago, when I pointed out Chucky was looking sad. That was what made me think for sure you were together.”

And. Oh. _Shit_. 

And they were right back to square fucking one. David had to swallow bile n

“Oh...” For a long second, that was all he could manage from numb lips. “Sorry about that, I didn’t think.”

“No, you didn’t.” Lindy’s voice was quiet. “That fucked me up for _days_.”

Didn’t think? Didn’t _think_? He’d fucked up and that was all he could manage? David snarled internally at himself. “Sorry.” He repeated, feeling useless. But... “That’s why you were so off all day?”

Lindy nodded. 

That was... Something wasn’t right. “I have... literally never had that happen, even with really fast link cuts.”

“Really?”

David shook his head. “Never.” He confirmed quietly. Linking and unlinking safely was one of the first things Talents- all Talents, no matter how strong- learned. It was essential to being able to _function_. 

...No wonder Lindy’s shields were so thick. 

“It happened with me, though.” Lindy said, an air of finality in his voice. “So maybe I’m just really sensitive or something, but I don’t really want to risk that happening again.”

Which was. Fair. 

“That makes sense.” David said quietly, trying to hide his disappointment. The last thing he wanted to do was pressure Lindy, especially not after the whole shitshow that he’d unknowingly caused the first time. 

David should... he should go. This... was probably the best he could have hoped for, with the new information that had come to light. Before he could say anything, Lindy shocked him into utter silence. 

He grabbed David’s wrist. _:Just don’t do it again, ok? Warn me first.:_

That. That was... David didn’t know what this was, other than a display of trust that just about knocked him on his ass. His eyes went wide. _:Yes! Absolutely, I won’t do that again.:_ He promised fervently. _:I never want to hurt you like that, Lindy.:_ Not knowingly, and now that he knew this was an issue, never again like that. 

He couldn’t take it if he drove Lindy away again. 

Lindy let go. David had to clench his hands to stop himself from reaching out, to take Lindy’s hand and beautiful mind back. He didn’t, but it was a close thing. 

“Give me a little time to rearrange my shields. Maybe I can keep it from happening again.” Lindy told him. 

David nodded, feeling like a bobble head with how quickly he moved to agree. “Yeah, of course!” Anything, if it meant that Lindy would be willing to share his mind again.

They stood for a long moment, David trying to stop smiling like an idiot, before Lindy shifted his weight, breaking the quiet. “I should get going.”

David didn’t want to, but... “Me too. I blew off Chucky to talk to you, so I’m gonna be hearing about that for a while.” Mostly about how he just needed to flash Lindy his dick a few times now that they were talking again, but Lindy didn’t need to know that. 

David didn’t want to know about Matty’s thoughts on the subject, to be honest, but he didn’t get a choice. 

“And you wonder why I thought you two were dating.” Lindy muttered.

David shrugged. He still didn’t quite see it, but whatever.

“See you tomorrow.”

“See you.”

David couldn’t wait.

* * *

_He thought we were dating_  
_as in you and me_

_HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA_  
_so what ur telling me is even your crush thinks we would make a better couple_  
_reconsidered yet_

_Fuck off_

_lol_

* * *

The euphoria of the moment had faded swiftly, once he and Lindy had gone their separate ways. Now, David was unaccountably nervous. Worried, that Lindy would change his mind, worried that he _wouldn’t_ , but that David had fucked up too badly to ever make it work again. 

Oh god. What if he had fucked Lindy up and Lindy didn’t even know because he hadn’t tried to bring his shields down yet?

He was five seconds from some kind of meltdown when Lindy walked into the room, and like some kind of movie cliche, everything just seemed to stop. The room fell away, the noise from all the other minds fell away, even David’s panic fell away, as they just... looked at each other. 

David’s heart was pounding. He didn’t know what he wanted more- for Lindy to open up his shields and show nothing had changed, or for them to just... keep going as they had been. Hope and fear warred, and David didn’t know which he wanted to win- 

Then Lindy’s shields folded around his mind like they weren’t even there, and David was flooded with warmth and rightness as their minds slotted together like they’d never been apart. And god, how could he have _ever_ thought it would be better to stay apart? 

He’d missed this so, so much. 

_:I’ve missed this. Missed you, Lindy.:_ He ‘pathed without thinking, and had to bite back an embarrassed flush. 

_:Missed you too.:_ Lindy’s mind was so warm. David luxuriated in it, wrapping every nook and cranny of Lindy’s open mind around himself like the softest, warmest blanket. 

_:Feels so good.:_ He sighed, and, oops. Hadn’t meant to ‘path that. It felt even better than that, really, but he hadn’t meant to be quite so obvious about it. 

:Yeah. It’s nice.: Lindy ‘pathed back, his own contentment making everything soft and hazy and lovely, and David smiled. 

Lindy was practically ‘glowing’, as Hanny put it, and it put a warm little glow in David’s heart as well, to feel that and know that he was part of it. He could feel it _all_ , and it was wonderful. They fell right back into bantering mentally while getting ready, and it was so good that his cheeks hurt from smiling and Matty was giving him disgusted looks from all the cheer. 

Not even having to go to practice could dampen that. David didn’t think there was anything that could. 

Apparently, he had some lessons to learn about the wisdom of tempting fate.

* * *

They got one week. One week of glorious, glorious connection, Lindy’s shields folding around David like he belonged there, Lindy’s mind singing welcome in chords no human throat could produce. One amazing, endless week. 

Then- 

_:I can’t believe that this is how it’s going to come out. Because I have to save Nealer from being crushed.:_

Lindy’s voice was calm and quiet and _empty_. He wasn’t even panicking anymore, he was just... numb. They both stared at their teammates, trapped and helpless as death hurtled closer, and Lindy didn’t feel like _anything_. 

_:Lindy, what? What are you-:_ David never finished the question. It had suddenly became very unnecessary to _ask_. He could just _know_ , now. After all- minds linked as tightly as Lindy had just done had no such thing as secrets. 

David didn’t need to ask. 

He _knew_. 

Lindy’s own mind had told him. Not that he could spare any thought to processing this- he was a bit busy, what with being suddenly drawn into gestalt. It had been years since the last time he’d even practiced this, and it was taking a lot of concentration to keep the link smooth and the power flowing. 

David might have been meant to be part of a Prime support team, but that had been a very long time ago. He might have been trained in being able to gestalt- to join his mind and Talent to a Prime’s, to allow the Prime to use his and others combined ability to perform acts beyond even the vast power of a lone Prime- but, he hadn’t expected to _use_ it, what with having abandoned FT&T to ‘selfishly live out his dreams’, far, far away from any Primes that might need the boost. 

Or... so he’d thought. 

But he wasn’t thinking about that now, wasn’t going to stop and ponder the implications of what was happening right now, because Lindy was drawing on his mind and all the power sources around them to be able to stop the metal plate from crushing their teammates. Using telekinesis to save their _lives_ and David couldn’t risk disrupting Lindy’s concentration in even the slightest manner. 

Lindy was a telepath and he was using telekinesis and _David was not going to think about that now_. They were too tightly linked. Any upset on David’s part and the whole house of cards might come crashing down- literally. (Not the time for puns, damnit.)

The panel was arrested midair long enough for Nealer’s line to scramble out from under it, before slowly lowering to the ice. Lindy was straining, parts of his Talent long atrophied from disuse working so hard _David_ could feel the ache. 

The panel hit the ice so softly there was barely even a sound. 

Then the entire rink exploded. People were shouting, voices overlapping until it all became indistinguishable white noise. David paid it no mind. There was only one thing that was important here, and that was Lindy. Who was swaying on his skates, face white and drenched in sweat, looking ready to collapse. 

“Lindy?” David asked- aloud, he was pretty sure Lindy couldn’t feel anything mentally right now, he was so exhausted- as he slowly approached. He had his hand out, reaching out to steady Lindy before he ended up in a heap on the ice. 

Lindy turned to look at him, slow and numb, face blank. This wasn’t convincing David that Lindy was ok in the slightest. “Hey man, you don’t look so good, maybe you should sit down-“

He was almost close enough to grab onto Lindy’s shoulder, as he swayed again, perilously close to coming unbalanced.

Lindy’s face was so white. “I can’t. I’m sorry.” He forced out, sounding like the words took a Herculean effort to even speak. “I’m sorry.” He said again, David shaking his head in negation. Lindy had nothing to apologize for, but David could tell him that after they’d gotten Lindy looked over. He reached out.

David’s fingers had barely grazed the fabric of Lindy’s shoulder when space rent in two and Lindy _vanished_. The air shuddered in the wake of the teleport, ringing with the psychic blast of sheer, utter terror Lindy had unleashed as he fled.

David was left staring dumbly, hand hanging in the empty space Lindy had been. 

Well. _That_ certainly helped things... Not. Also, David was pretty sure he was going to have nightmares about that moment. 

The rest of the world filtered back in, slowly. It was mostly just more shouting. No one knew what to think, what to do. Nealer, Janner, and Benny were getting checked out by the trainers, trying to address any issues of shock or strains caused by the sudden sprint for their lives. Gio was trying to corral the rest of the team and get them off the ice before another panel ruptured. Coach looked ready to have a stroke. 

It was so loud David couldn’t even _think_ past the ringing in his ears, the thoughts clattering through his mind. 

Lindy was gone. Lindy was a Prime. Lindy had been completely and viscerally terrified. 

He’d been afraid this whole time.

Fuck. 

_Fuck_. 

Oh, motherfucking _fuck_. 

David was going to be sick. 

Lindy _had_ actually been scared of David this whole time, had been terrified that he’d be found out as a Prime. David didn’t need to guess, it had all been Lindy could think about as he used the link to power his telekinesis. This all consuming fear, that he would be discovered, that he would be hated. 

That he would never get to play hockey again. 

That was the thought that finally snapped David out of his shock. 

Lindy... Lindy was just like him. 

If nothing else, David owed it to him to make sure he could keep doing that, after everything David had put him through. 

All the terror, all the struggles... David swallowed hard, and put his fingers to his mouth. 

The whistle pierced the air, and going by the winces, more than a few eardrums. But it got them to be quiet. All eyes turned his way.

David stared the group, face hard. Lindy wanted to live life as a hockey player, not a Prime. David would make sure that could happen. 

“I trust you all know exactly why we need to keep what happened today a secret.” He said quietly, back straight and letting his pads lend him the bulk he usually lacked. David swept his gaze across the room, making sure to make eye contact with every single person. “And I think it goes without saying that if I hear even a whisper of it leaking, I will find out who talked. And you will not like it.” 

David had had all the ethics trainings any Talent got, with a few more besides due to his high levels. This was coming perilously close to abuse of his Talent.

He didn’t give a fuck. 

He just pinned the entire room with a grim stare. “Understood?”

They stared back. The silence stretched long. David didn’t back down. The silence stretched longer.

The clap startled all of them, a mass jump that would have been funny under any other circumstance. Coach lowered his hands as all eyes turned to him. 

“There’s no need for that, Ritter.” He said, voice calm but firm. “This will not leave the rink.” He eyed the team and the trainers. “Lindy is an important and valuable member of this team, and his privacy _will_ be respected.” What went unsaid, but not unheard, was that anyone who couldn’t, _wasn’t_. David felt his shoulders relax. 

“Fuck, are you kidding? I’m not gonna spill, I owe that fucker a drink!” Nealer shouted, Janner and Benny nodding in agreement. 

Gio stood. “I think I speak for all of us when I say that we’d never do anything to hurt Lindy. He’s team.” Heads were nodding all around the rink.

David swallowed against the tightness in his chest, feeling warm all over. He loved this team. They were just... So good, so much more than he’d ever expected. 

If only Lindy was here, to hear it for himself. 

That made him pause. Where _was_ Lindy? He’d ‘ported away, but David had no idea what his range might be, or how accurate he’d been, ‘porting in a blind panic. All the good feelings drained in an instant as he processed exactly what that meant. He opened his mouth- to say what, he wasn’t sure, only that they had to know-

The ceiling creaked ominously. Everyone froze, holding their breath for a long second as panels shifted and resettled. Nothing fell. Thankfully- David was positive that they were all out miracles. 

“Alright, everyone off the ice, now!” Coach barked. No one protested- in fact, no one said a word. It was the quickest, quietest exit from the ice David had ever seen. They congregated in the locker room, no one even changing yet, as the realities of what had just happened began to set in. 

David couldn’t bother with that. He stood. “We need to find Lindy.” He said quietly. Heads all around the room snapped up. 

“Oh shit.” Matty cursed under his breath. He’d picked up a lot about Talents, just by being friends with David, and the issues with ‘porting had definitely come up. Gio frowned.

“What happened, anyway?” 

“He teleported away.” David explained, fighting to keep his voice even. “He was panicking. It happens, sometimes, Talents that get overwhelmed.” With _Primes_ that got overwhelmed. Usually young, untrained ones- which Jesus fuck, had Lindy ever had _any_ training beyond those idiots that had somehow thought he was a T12? Shit. 

He might be anywhere. 

“He could have ended up anywhere.” David dropped to sit on the bench, face paling. Hanny had his phone out and pressed to his ear. He shook his head when they looked at him. 

“It’s just going to voicemail.” Hanny hissed as he redialed, only to shake his head again. “He’s not answering.” 

Matty nudged David, face for once entirely serious. “Can’t you just talk to him?” He waved a hand around his head. “You know, with your mind?”

David could feel everyone staring at him. He shook his head slowly. “He broke the link, and I can’t feel him anywhere. He might be out of my range, or just shielding.” He paused. “And _nothing_ gets through his shields if he doesn’t want it to.” 

Matty tilted his head. “Because of the...” He didn’t say it. David still glared a little as he shook his head. 

“No, because Lindy is still just really good at shielding. I guess this explains why he got so good.” He shrugged. 

Hanny threw down his phone. “He’s not answering me. Someone else should try.” 

Gio tried. So did Johnny, Mony, and Coach. 

They all got the same result. Just a mechanical voice that told them to leave a message, and then, that the mailbox was full as they left message after message. 

Coach was frowning. “Would he have left the country?” 

David wondered when had a telepath become an expert on teleporting. Then again, he was the only Talent around, since the actual teleporter was the one currently causing the issues. He just shrugged. “I don’t know.” 

Coach’s lips thinned. “Right. Then this is what we’ll do. The rest of you, go home.” He raised his voice to be heard over the immediate flood of protests. “You aren’t doing Lindy any good sitting here. Go home, get some rest. One of you, someone close to Lindy, will go to his place and see if he’s there. We’ll start figuring out where to go from there.” 

Everyone glanced towards Hanny. Hanny stared back. 

“Oh, fuck no. I like Lindy plenty but I have no idea how to deal with Talent bullshit. Ritter, you go.” 

David started. “I don’t know where he lives.” 

Hanny snorted and grabbed his phone. David’s phone buzzed, Hanny having airdropped Lindy’s information. “There you go.” His face softened. “You know best about this stuff, and about Lindy, man. You’ll find him.” 

Heads were nodding. “Yeah, you always know where he is.” Johnny chimed in. David didn’t bother to explain again that that was only when they were linked. It just wasn’t worth getting into it again. 

David bit back a frown. He didn’t know why he wanted to fight this- maybe because he wasn’t sure Lindy would actually want to see him. Because David definitely wanted to see Lindy. Was desperate to, actually. To see that he was ok, to make sure. To hold him and never let him disappear again. (Not that the last would ever happen. Lindy wasn’t interested in him like that. For reasons that were increasingly obvious. Primes and intimacy were... complicated.) 

“Ok.” He said softly. “I’ll go.” Gio nodded. 

“Text me, whatever you find. We’ll figure it out from there.” He suggested. 

David nodded. “Yeah, of course.”

He didn’t know what he’d do if Lindy wasn’t at his apartment. 

He didn’t know what he’d do if Lindy _was_. 

For now, he started stripping out of his gear. One thing at a time- he couldn’t exactly drive in goalie pads.

* * *

Lindy didn’t live far from the rink. Blessing and curse, that. It didn’t take David long to get there, but that also meant he didn’t have much time to think about what he’d do, what he’d say. 

Staring at Lindy’s door, he realized that it didn’t matter. Every thought he’d had on the way flew out of his head as he felt, for what felt like the first time, Lindy’s mind. 

He was still here. David had to lean against the door to keep from collapsing in relief. He raised a hand, knocking politely on the door. “Lindy?” 

No response. Lindy’s mind was still there, shielded but present. It was quiet, too, almost like... sleep. Or shock. 

David knocked harder. 

Nothing. 

His heart started to race. He knocked again, pounding his fist against the door. 

“Lindy?” He called. “Lindy! Lindy, please, open up!”

“Lindy, please! I can feel that you’re in there, please let me in!” He shouted. Oh god, what if Lindy hadn’t managed to teleport safely? What if he was hurt? He slammed his fist against the stubborn door. “Lindy!” 

David was almost sobbing, now, frantic with worry. “Elias, _please_.” The name slipped out without conscious thought. “We’re all worried about you. _I’m_ worried about you.”

Silence. Lindy’s mind felt like so much nothing. David’s heart sped up even more, hammering against his ribs. 

“Please, just. Open the door. Please, just let me know that you’re ok.” David was begging now. He didn’t care. He’d do anything, if it got Lindy to open that door, if it meant Lindy was safe and alright. 

“Elias! Come on, please!” He shouted again, hoping that Lindy could hear him, that he wasn’t ignoring him. 

And then... the sense of Lindy’s mind flickered, and went out. David’s breath froze in his throat, the shout strangled by the sudden lack of air. He leaned against the door, voice breaking as he tried, one last time. 

“I can’t feel you anymore. Please, just be ok.”

He went to knock again, mechanical and rote and unable to do anything else other than beg at Lindy’s door, when-

The door swung open. 

Lindy was shirtless and in sweatpants, pale with deep bags highlighting his dead eyes. He looked like shit. 

He was the most beautiful thing David had ever seen. 

David fell apart. “Oh thank god.” He breathed, and before he could even think, grabbed onto Lindy in a bear hug, holding on tight. Lindy’s skin was soft and warm under his fingers, and finally, David started to think that things might be alright. Lindy was still _here_ , and David could feel him, in his arms and against his mind, to prove it. 

Slowly, Lindy hugged him back, and it was the best thing David had felt since the first time Lindy had opened up his mind to him. Certainly, it was the best David had felt since he watched his friend and crush stop a falling sheet of metal from killing their teammates and then vanish. 

“We were so worried, Lindy, fuck. Don’t run off like that, you terrified us all.” He murmured, still holding on tightly. He couldn’t even sound angry about it, he was just so relieved. 

Lindy was there, Lindy was alright, Lindy was... confused?

“What?”

David leaned back enough to make eye contact. “Lindy.You performed a sudden act of telekinesis and gestalt so powerful that you blew out half the lights in the rink and then teleported away after broadcasting panic so loud that the entire building- nonTalents included- felt it. We’ve been worried sick.” David most of all. 

Lindy just stared. “You’re not... mad?”

Which. What? 

David stared back. 

Why on earth would David be mad? Lindy was _here_ and _ok_ , there was nothing to be mad about! 

“Lindy, why the fuck would I be mad?” He finally asked, when staring gave him no clue as to what the fuck Lindy was thinking. 

“Why _wouldn’t_ you be?” Lindy asked, voice almost trembling. “I lied to you- to all of you- for _months_. I let you assume things about me that weren’t true, and.” Lindy had to take a second. “I used your Talent for gestalt without asking. I used _you_.”

And, oh, oh Lindy no. David shook his head forcefully enough to make it spin. “You used my Talent to help save our teammates lives.” He shot back immediately. He couldn’t let Lindy think that way, let him flay himself over doing something so good, over letting his secrets be revealed rather than let someone _die_. “There was no time to do anything but react, and Lindy. I’m so fucking grateful that you did. They all are.”

He paused, because that wasn’t quite all. “They’re also going to kick your ass for making us worry like that, but that comes later. First off, are you ok?”

Lindy... ignored the question. “The team is ok? Nealer and the others- they’re alright?”

David stared. His first response was to ask if the others were _alright_? “What the- yes, they’re fine! They’re all out of their minds worried about you, I had to convince them to let me come alone so that they didn’t overwhelm you. Nealer is insisting he owes you drinks for the rest of forever, and Gio is about ready to come over himself to make sure you didn’t fall into a coma or something. You haven’t been answering your phone and everyone is freaking out.” He exclaimed, feeling suddenly exasperated and so, so fucking fond he could barely breath. 

“I turned it off.” Lindy sounded kind of faint. He turned his head, _nuzzling into David’s shoulder_. Oh god, he was going to die from the cuteness of it all. David was blushing, he just knew it. 

“We figured that out eventually.” Probably should have figured it out sooner, to be honest, but no one had ever accused hockey players of genius, and worried and panicking hockey players were even worse. 

“So, when are they coming?” Lindy asked, somewhat nonsensically. 

“The team? Not until I give the ok- and I really don’t think you’re ok.” Lindy definitely didn’t seem up for the whole team descending on him in a flurry of worried shouts and questions about, well, everything. 

Lindy shook his head. “No, not the team. FT&T.”

...What? 

Why would- how would- what? 

“Why would FT&T be coming here?” David really didn’t understand. Why would Lindy think FT&T would be coming? It wasn’t like they had some kind of tracking system that could sense when a Prime used their Talent. 

“I figured you guys called them as soon as I left the building.” Lindy’s voice was calm and matter of fact. It sent chills down his spine. 

David stared, horror curdling thick in his gut. “Why?” Why would Lindy think that they would sell him out like that? They were a _team_ , they were his _friends_. It made David feel sick to think that Lindy thought they would just abandon him. 

Lindy stared at David like he was an idiot. “I’m a _Prime_ , Ritter.” He said slowly. “You have to have figured that out.”

David’s voice was dry. He couldn’t help it. “Yeah. Yeah, I guessed as much when I felt you gestalt with me and freeze an enormous hunk of metal in midair.” 

“Exactly.” Lindy said, acting as if that had explained everything, when it hadn’t done shit except restate facts everyone was well aware of by now. “So, when is FT&T coming?”

“They aren’t.” Because of fucking course they weren’t, and now David’s heart was aching, just a little. “Lindy, we didn’t call them. Why would we have?”

“Because I’m a Prime that’s been lying to you guys- to everyone- about my Talent level for years?” Now Lindy just sounded like he was wondering if David might be stupid. Which- David was a hockey player, not a moron. 

“I’m sure you had your reasons.” David could even guess some of them. It had been a... debacle, when he’d left FT&T for hockey. An undiscovered _Prime_? Yeah, David could believe Lindy had had many, many good reasons to avoid being known as a Prime. 

“You are being way too calm about this.” Lindy’s eyes were narrowed and suspicious. 

David laughed, the sound harsh in his throat. He couldn’t help it. “Lindy, it’s been hours since you fled the rink. We were honestly worried you’d decided to run all the way back to Sweden. I’m nowhere near calm, I’m just grateful you’re here and mostly ok.” He said, maybe too honest, but who cared about that? Revealing his feelings because he said something so intensely, too honestly, was the least of his worries right now. 

“Mostly?” Lindy blinked up at him. They were close enough for David to count the eyelashes, but he felt absolutely no need to put any distance between them. 

“I can feel how much you’re panicking, beneath the shock.” David clarified, squeezing Lindy more tightly for a moment in reminder. 

Lindy abruptly remembered that touch allowed for deeper readings, but didn’t try to move away. David had to suppress a smile. 

“Oh.”

“Yeah, _oh_.” David agreed amusedly, sighing through his nose as his heart rate finally started to calm down. 

Lindy shivered, glancing around as if finally remembering where they were. Given that David had forgotten where they were, it was a distinct possibility. “Maybe we should continue this inside?” Lindy suggested, tone a touch dry. 

David’s cheeks went even redder. “Oh. Uh, yeah. Probably a good idea.” He didn’t move. It felt like moving would break the moment around them, and... He liked that moment. It was nice. 

Lindy tried to take a step back, and it was like every nerve in David’s body fired all at once. His heart went right back to hammering, and his arms tightened without even thinking. 

Lindy blinked. David blinked back. “Um. You might have to let me go?” Lindy said, tentative. 

David... Really, really didn’t want to do that. The very idea made visions of before- of Lindy, vanishing from beneath David’s outstretched hand, possibly to never be seen again- flash across his eyes and. David just. Couldn’t do that. Couldn’t let go. He tried to play it off, make a joke of it. “I’m a little afraid if I do you’ll disappear again.” It... didn’t work. He could see that in Lindy’s eyes, the storm beginning to swirl back to life. 

“Oh.” Lindy murmured. They stood in silence for a long moment. David steeled himself to try and let go, but before he could convince his arms to actually release, Lindy was sliding one of his hands into David’s. “There.” He said with satisfaction, stepping back and gently shaking off the hug. “C’mon.” He tugged their joined hands until David followed him through the open apartment door. 

The second the door closed behind them, David couldn’t keep himself from pulling Lindy back into a hug- not because he was afraid he’d vanish, this time. Just because he was so goddamn _happy_ , that Lindy was there and willing to indulge him. 

You really, really scared us. Scared me.” He said, face buried in Lindy’s still damp hair.

“Why?” Somehow, Lindy was still confused. 

“You panicked and vanished, Lindy. I thought for a second that I was never going to see you again.” David said, more gentle than he felt.

“And that would be a bad thing?” 

David couldn’t stop the near whimper that emerged from his throat. “Yes, that would be a bad thing!” He almost yelled from the sheer force of the emotions pin-balling through him. Lindy jumped as much as the vice grip David had around him would let him. 

“...Sorry.” David murmured and loosened his grip. “Just... why do you think we wouldn’t want you around? That _I_ wouldn’t want you around.” It made his heart hurt, the very idea that Lindy would ever doubt his welcome among the team- that he would doubt his welcome with _David_. 

David wanted Lindy around _all the time_ \- but that was his own issue, not really relevant to the current concern. 

“I’m a Prime.” Lindy sighed. David hummed encouragingly. “People don’t. People don’t like being around Primes. They’re afraid of them.” Lindy probably hadn’t meant to project what he thought of next, but they were too close for his thoughts to go completely unheard. He’d seen a Prime, seen people react with awe and fear, and had known then that he never would want that. 

David... David could relate. He loved being a T4, loved the options it gave him- because he’d never have heard how beautiful Lindy’s mind was if he wasn’t Talented, but... He could relate. 

Lindy continued, quiet. “I figured, if people knew, no one would want to be around me or play hockey with me anymore. And now you know. The whole team knows. I figured you’d report me to FT&T so that you could get me away from you.”

And now, David just _hurt_. For Lindy, for every time he’d been terrified to lose everything just for being who and what he was. God. David’s eyes prickled, and a soft noise of sadness slipped out before he could pull it back. 

“Lindy. None of us are going to call FT&T on you. I talked to the team before coming here, made sure no one was going to do something dumb. We all figured you had reasons for not telling us, and none of us want you to go.” He kept his voice quiet, afraid that if he spoke too loudly something would break- himself, Lindy, he didn’t know. 

Lindy looked a little like David had hit him in the face with a fish. David laughed, still quiet. He couldn’t help it- that face was just _funny_. “We _like_ you, Lindy. We don’t want you to go. I mean, you’re going to have a lot of questions to answer, but that’s just because our teammates are a bunch of nosy assholes that don’t know when to leave well enough alone.”

Lindy stared, like David was speaking gibberish. “You’ll let me stay, keep my secrets, just like that?” He sounded so disbelieving, for a long moment David wondered if Lindy had ever had any actual _friends_. But he had the answer- no one that knew all of Lindy and accepted him anyway. Lindy had carried this secret, this fear, _alone_ , for however long he’d known. And Primes tended to manifest young... .And now David’s eyes were watering again. 

“Just like that.” David confirmed, smiling. “We trust you, Lindy. That outweighs any sudden revelations about Talents.” He thought for a second, then figured he might as well just go for it. “Though I would like to know how a Prime got labeled a T12. Purely out of curiosity.”

Lindy laughed for the first time since shit started going down, and it was the best thing David had ever heard. “I blew out the machine and it zeroed out.” 

The laugh ripped out of David, rocking his head back with the force of it. Of all the ways... His laugh was maybe a little hysterical, but it really was funny. Technical difficulties... God. 

Something so complicated David couldn’t even begin to decipher it seeped through all the places their skins touched. He looked- and his laugh died in his throat.

Lindy was crying. Silent tears spilled from his eyes and down his face. 

“Lindy? Lindy, what’s wrong? Did I do something?” David asked, frantic, as Lindy kept crying. 

Lindy just shook his head and pulled David until they were at the couch, then pulled him down on it. He curled up, burying his face in David’s shoulder. David felt helpless- he didn’t know what to do, so he just rubbed circles on Lindy’s back. “Lindy...” He said, quiet. 

Lindy kept crying, but finally spoke. “I’m just happy. I was. I was really scared that you guys were going to hate me.” _’That you were going to hate me.’_

David couldn’t let the unspoken go unaddressed this time. Not when it was that. “I could never hate you!”

Lindy was bemused, before recalling, again, all the touching, and the state of his shields. Which... yeah, weren’t up to the usual Lindy standard. He’d had a hell of a day, so David wasn’t surprised. “Yeah, you’re pretty loud right now, bud.” David couldn’t stop the fondness he felt at that from seeping through. Not that Lindy cared. He was busy mentally grumbling about how much he hated emotions. 

David tried not to laugh, he really did. But Lindy was just... so much like a cat inconveniently introduced to water right now. It was adorable. Lindy made a grumpy noise, and David finally got himself under control. “Sorry.” 

David didn’t know how long they sat in silence, but eventually the feeling in the air changed. It felt safe to speak, so he did. “Feel better?” 

Lindy nodded against his chest.

“I’m glad.” An understatement, really. “Is it ok if I call Gio, let him know that you’re ok and haven’t left the country?” Also a very real concern, when you were dealing with high level teleporters. David was surprised no one had tried to call him yet, actually.

“Tell then I’m ok, but not up to visitors.”

Oh, definitely not. David wasn’t letting that group of well meaning but overbearing idiots anywhere _near_ Lindy when he was still this fragile. If nothing else, his shields would never be able to handle the barrage and that was to say nothing of everything else. 

One handed, he dialed Gio. “Hey, I’m with Lindy. He’s ok, just worn out. No visitors.” He said quietly. 

Gio blew out a relieved breath. “Oh thank god. I’ll tell the idiots to call off the search party.”

David snorted. “Definitely do. He’s still pretty freaked and I’m exhausted.” 

Gio laughed. “I’m sure. Hey, Coach wanted me to pass on that neither of you need to come to practice tomorrow. Take a day, rest and recover.”

“Thank God. Tell Coach thanks.” 

“Will do. See you in a few. Be ready to answer questions, but tell them to fuck off if they get annoying.” Gio hung up. David tucked his phone away before anyone got the bright idea to start texting him. He nudged Lindy. 

“They’ve got a lot of questions, but they’re willing to wait for you to be ready to answer them. Coach said to take tomorrow off.” Not quite, but David was more than willing to tell _everyone_ to fuck off until Lindy felt ready to face them. 

Lindy nodded, not speaking, but his mind was... jittery? It kind of sounded like bees buzzing as he worried at something like a sore tooth. 

“Lindy?” 

Lindy sat up. David immediately mourned the lose of closeness, but didn’t pull Lindy back. This... This felt important. 

While I was waiting for FT&T,” Lindy began, David making a hurt noise at the thought. Lindy shook his head, and kept going. “While I was waiting, I was thinking.”

Lindy lifted his head and met David’s gaze head on. His eyes were the shifting, gleaming brightness of a day after the storm. “I was going to miss a lot of things, if I had to leave the team. But what I was most sad about. What I regretted the most was that I’d never get to kiss you.” 

David’s ears were ringing. He felt a little bit like ground zero after the explosion, such was the bomb Lindy had just. Casually lobbed into his lap. His mind was just pure whiteness, no thoughts making it past the shock. He blinked, and realized his jaw was hanging open. He couldn’t muster the presence of mind to close it, as somewhere deep in his subconscious, he realized exactly what had just happened. 

He didn’t know how long he sat there, dumb with shock, but he knew the second he left it too long. Lindy started to withdraw, eyes darting away. David wanted to cry out at the lose of that gaze. “Sorry.” Lindy muttered, and tried to pull away, and, no, no! That wasn’t what David wanted at all! 

“No, wait!” He reached out, grabbing at Lindy’s hands. “You mean that?” David asked, voice low and eyes intent on Lindy’s face. “You really mean that?” He had to know... If he’d heard Lindy right, if Lindy meant it, if this was what David thought it might be... 

Lindy nodded. “I like you. I really, really like you.”

This time, David was the one exploding, from the sheer force of the joy ripping through him and into Lindy. “I like you too.” Though _like_ really barely covered all the things David felt for Lindy, all the ways he felt upon having the one thing he never thought would happen fall right into his lap. 

He had to pause for a second at that just to process. Lindy _liked_ him. Liked _David_. 

“Oh.” Lindy breathed, eyes wide. And then. And then, he _smiled_ , and it wasn’t like any smile David had every seen before, wide and happy and so, so full of joy that David’s heart felt about to burst. David smiled back. It was less a decision and more an instinct, mirroring that gorgeous smile that lit up Lindy’s eyes like the sun refracting through the clouds. 

They spent a long moment, staring into each other’s eyes, feeling each other’s happiness, before a thought occurred to David, and his smile grew sly. “So. About that kiss...” He quirked an eyebrow. “Wouldn’t want you to have any regrets.” 

Lindy laughed, but leaned forward.

Their lips met, and then-

Their minds fell into each other, all shields gone. And it was the most beautiful thing David had ever heard, both their minds singing in harmony. Lindy pressed closer, and in his mind he was still calling David Ritter, which was just... Faintly ridiculous, at this juncture. 

_:You can call me David, you know.:_ David ‘pathed, rather than break the kiss. Lindy smiled against his lips, before leaning back and, hey, no, that wasn’t right at all! David leaned forward, making a noise deep in his throat as he tried to get back to kissing Lindy, when Lindy stopped him. 

“Call me Elias.” Lindy- _Elias_ \- said aloud, eyes sparkling. “I like how it sounds in your voice.”

And that... That sent heat racing through David, though he quickly pushed it aside. It was... a bit too soon for that, just yet. Kissing, though... His voice was rough from emotion and want and _need_. “Elias. Kiss me.”

And Elias did. They could have kissed for a minute or an hour- David didn’t know, and didn’t care. What did it matter? This was so much more important. He could do it forever. 

Or, at least until Elias’s yawn forced them to break apart. Elias looked sheepish, and David laughed, soft and fond. 

“You’ve had one hell of a day. You should probably get some sleep.” He was actually surprised Elias had lasted this long.

“Sorry.” Elias offered a chagrined smile. 

David had to shake his head at that- Elias apologized way too much, for things he couldn’t really help most of the time. “Elias, I’m just happy you’re ok and _here_.” _’With me’_ , he on,h barely kept himself from adding. “Anyone would be exhausted after the way today’s gone.” David sure as hell was, and he hadn’t even been the one ‘porting or panicking for most of it, notwithstanding those moments at the rink. 

Reluctantly, he started the process of getting them separated and off the couch so that Elias could go to bed. Elias protested wordlessly, mostly mentally. 

“You need to sleep.” David pointed out gently. 

Elias just broadcast that that didn’t mean David had to leave, and David chuckled a little. It was kind of adorable, Elias’s sudden preference for mental communication. Still, best to confirm. “You want me to stay?”

The mental _’Yes!’_ hit hard enough to almost feel like a physical blow, and... Right. Prime. Untrained Prime. Untrained, tightly linked Prime.

 _Ouch_. 

“Ok, jeez, no need to give me a migraine.” David chided gently, laughing to keep the words from stinging too much. 

Elias still immediately projected contrition, more delicately than before. “Sorry.”

David waved a hand. “Eh, it’s ok. I’m just not used to how you feel when you’re not holding back yet.” Which was true. Also, hopefully now that Elias had someone in the know to practice with, he’d get better about regulating things when he wasn’t pretending to have basically no Talent at all. 

David realized his mistake as suddenly shame flooded from Elias, his mind going back to the way he’d lied. And that was just not ok, Elias should never feel ashamed of what he’d done just to be able to live his life. “Hey, none of that. I already told you, it’s fine. You had your reasons. I of all people can understand that.” And David did, so very, very much, as Elias quickly remembered- or rather, felt as David remembered. 

Elias was dropping where he sat, and David made the executive decision to cut off any deep conversation now and get him to bed. “C’mon.” He pulled Elias upright, quickly wrapping an arm around his waist when he swayed alarmingly. “Bed.” Together, they slowly walked down the hall to the bedroom, where Elias barely kept upright long enough to strip out of his sweatpants. 

Flopping onto the bed, he stretched out, all long,lean muscle and flawless skin, and David had to swiftly shove aside a sudden burst of arousal. Still not the time, he reminded himself sharply. Elias was gorgeous, yeah, but they hadn’t even talked about what they were to each other. Anything more could come later, if it ever did. 

Then Elias patted the other side of the bed. “Come on. It’s late, sleep here.” 

That was... a lot, to handle right now. “Are you sure? You’ve been through a lot today, don’t you want to sleep it off?” 

The sleepy glare he got for that was too adorable for words. “Rather sleep it off with you here.” 

Things were not getting any easier to handle. Apparently, David took too long, because Elias stopped pulling his punches. “You can’t tell me you really want to leave me alone.”

That? That was just dirty. That was reminding David of the very lovely nightmares he was sure he was going to be getting, sooner rather than later, of Elias disappearing forever. 

“You play dirty.” He accused, though he couldn’t muster up any real indignation. It wasn’t like he didn’t _want_ to sleep with Elias in his bed, it was just... He maybe wanted it too much?

“You haven’t let go of me the entire time you’ve been here. Forgive me if that leads me to think that you don’t want to leave.” Elias said, giving David a supremely unimpressed look. 

“You got me there.” He finally capitulated and started stripping out of his clothes. Sleeping in jeans was awful, even if he wasn’t really sure that sleeping in his boxers next to the guy he liked was any better. 

The hunger that emanated off of Elias as he undressed was... intriguing, to say the least. _Definitely_ something to explore later. David caught Elias’s eye and smiled, unable to help it, even though he had no intention of doing anything tonight. They were tired, and David didn’t want to push anything. Instead, he just climbed into bed. 

Elias immediately wrapped himself around David. David laughed a little. “Clingy.” He teased- though he probably shouldn’t be one to talk, given... everything, earlier. 

Elias shrugged, uncaring. “Not many people I can touch without catching something I don’t want to. It feels nice.” He explained. 

And that... that was... That was just sad. “Oh.” David said. “Oh. You’re a _Prime_.” He couldn’t believe he hadn’t thought of that- of _all_ of what that meant- until now. 

Elias’s eyebrow went up. “I thought we established that a while ago.” His tone questioned David’s reasoning faculties. David was kind of questioning them himself, now. 

David went red. “I guess I hadn’t really thought of what that meant.” He said, probably broadcasting embarrassment something awful. “And we all just kept touching you...” Jesus how had he not thought of that? “God that must have been awful.”

Elias’s shrug this time was casual, almost overly so. “I have very good shields.”

“That you do.” David agreed. _Incredibly_ good shields, and finding out Elias was a Prime explained _so much_ about _everything_. “But that doesn’t keep out everything, does it? It must be overwhelming.”

“I am very good at tuning things out.” Elias said simply. David could feel how much more there was to it than that- a lifetime of keeping his head down and his mouth shut, learning to filter everything so that he didn’t know anything he shouldn’t, hear anything he just didn’t want to, building his shields thicker and thicker and thicker until he stopped being able to hear anything at all. David didn’t say anything for a long moment- didn’t know what to say. He just pressed a kiss to the top of Elias’s head and hoped that was enough to convey everything he felt. 

“Just let me know. Anything you need, even if it’s just someone to nudge people out of the way. Don’t want you to hurt, Elias. Not ever.” He said, voice low and trying to project how much he meant every word of it. 

The words were barely out of his mouth when he was bowled over with the wave of love that exploded outwards from Elias. His breath caught as he was dragged under, unable to think or feel anything except love, love, _love_. It was just... so much, and so much more than he’d ever thought to expect, so early on, maybe ever. 

It took David a long moment, but he finally reoriented himself enough to focus on Elias, lying so still next to him. “Elias?” He asked it out loud. To ‘path it seemed... too much, too open and exposed. He needed to give at least the illusion of distance. 

Elias met his eyes evenly, and it was like looking into a deep pool. There was no bottom to be found, only endless water to lose himself in. 

_:I do think I might love you.:_ Elias ‘pathed, mind deliberately open. _:No, I do. I do love you.:_ He hesitated for a second. _:I didn’t want to say it yet, because I thought it might be too soon.:_

And that... that wasn’t what David wanted. For Elias to feel like he still had to hide, now? 

David never wanted Elias to feel like he had to hide again. 

But more than that... Elias _loved_ him? Loved David? _:Elias...:_ He ‘pathed, feeling helpless beneath the avalanche of emotions crashing through them both, hoping that that would be enough to convey everything. 

But instead, Elias began to withdraw. _:Sorry.:_ He ‘pathed quietly, self recrimination beginning to swirl through his mind, and that wasn’t what David meant at all! Lost for words, he did the only thing he could think to do, and curved a hand around the back of Elias’s neck and pulled him in for a deep kiss. 

He kissed until Elias began to kiss back, and then they kissed some more, Davo trying to our everything into Elias through the touch of their lips alone. 

But that also wasn’t right. Elias had been brave enough to put himself out there, and it wasn’t fair for David to try and cop out. So he pulled back. Elias’s eyes were gratifyingly glazed, but they cleared quickly as David ‘pathed _:I love you too.:_ Because he did. So much. He wasn’t sure how he’d gone so long without realizing it, but he loved Elias, so very much. 

_:Oh.:_ Elias breathed, eyes wide and mind singing. 

David beamed. _:Yeah.:_ He agreed, feeling a little like he’d run for miles. It was a good feeling. Elias smiled back, the two of them grinning at each other like fools for a long moment. Then David yawned. The day was finally catching up to him. 

Elias buried his face in David’s shoulder, his hair, dried and fluffy now, tickling against David’s neck. David gave into the temptation to stroke it. 

“Go to sleep. I’ll be here when you wake up.” He promised. 

Elias fell asleep quickly, after that, and David followed him down into rest. 

His dreams were sweet.

* * *

David hadn’t planned to spend their day off having sex, but. Well, waking up like that? David was only a man, and having the man he loved demand David fuck him was more than he could resist.

The shower blowjobs were pretty good too.

* * *

Elias didn’t show it on his face, but David could feel his concern, his worry as he stared at the locker room doors. The team was behind them, a cacophony of minds all thinking about the upcoming practice and game and what to have for lunch. But that wasn’t what mattered to Elias- what mattered to him was what would happen now. 

David laced their fingers together. _:It’ll be ok. They were all worried about you. I’m here for you.:_ He ‘pathed reassuringly. 

Elias’s shoulders squared, and together, they walked into the room. 

Watching the team welcome Elias sent something warm alight in David’s chest. They were a good bunch. 

Suddenly, a very sharp finger jabbed into his collarbone. “Ouch!” He clapped a hand to the sore spot, glaring. Matty grinned up at him, eyes bright. 

“So... Got something you wanna tell me?” He poked the spot, which had Elias had taken his mouth to with a vengeance at one point, making it sting. 

David glowered at him for another moment, before giving in to the infectious joy everyone was radiating, and starting to laugh. 

He caught Elias’s eye from across the room and beamed, delighted to receive an equally bright smile back. 

David couldn’t wait to see what happened next.

**Author's Note:**

> Not pictured in this fic: Chucky and Hanny bitching to the NTDP group chat about how absolutely stupid their teammates are. 
> 
> I’m on tumblr as airilymusing, if you’d like to chat over there!


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